//------------------------------//
// Day Nine - Amalgamation 
// Story: Tenacious Dash 
// by Hipster Cloudchaser 
//------------------------------//

	Rainbow Dash stirred from her slumber, opening her eyes to gaze upon the sleeping form of Applejack beside her. Just a week ago, she would never have considered this a possibility, but now it seemed one of the less remarkable occurrences of the past few days.

Frowning at that thought, Rainbow carefully slipped out of bed as to not disturb her partner and made her way over to the window. The sun was just making its way over the horizon line, illuminating the vast expanse of apple trees she had begun to call home.

In her trance-like state of wakefulness, Rainbow felt more contemplative than usual. What was more; it felt as though a haze had lifted from her mind, revealing a treasure trove of questions that seemed so obvious to ask. One of these in particular stood out to her as it came to her lips. “Why am I so calm about all this?”

Behind Rainbow, Applejack began to wake, both at the uttered inquiry and the lack of a pegasus by her side. Applejack rubbed an eye and yawned, looking blearily in Rainbow’s direction. “Somethin’ the matter, sugarcube?”

Rainbow glanced behind herself. “I don’t know. I’m just getting this sense that not everything’s alright. Almost like there’s something really important that we’re missing.”

“Ya mean how everythin’s kinda been happenin’ all at once?” Applejack guessed.

Rainbow nodded. “Yeah, like, why now? Is there something going on that’s making all this go crazy? I mean, it wasn’t so bad when it was just us, but then everypony started pairing up for no reason! And why is it all the same thing? I know there hasn’t been any sort of big adventure happening lately, but why would that change so much? Scoot, AB and Sweetie kinda got the idea from us, but what about everypony else?”

Applejack cocked her head in thought. “And Twilight ain’t here ta answer any o’ those.”

Rainbow paused. “You don’t think Twilight not being here has anything to do with it?”

“Twilight’s been away plenty o’ times before, Rainbow. Ain’t nothin’ new,” Applejack pointed out. “But what’s brought all this on now? Ain’t like ya ta fret the small stuff.”

“This isn’t small stuff; this is about all of Ponyville!” Rainbow retorted. “Twilight left us in charge and everything’s blown up in our faces! How are we gonna tell her we bucked up so bad that the whole town started bucking?”

“Why are ya convinced this is our fault?” Applejack inquired. “Ah’m not even sure there’s a fault ta be had here. And ya seemed real excited ‘bout all this just yesterday.”

Rainbow bit her lip. “It really just hit me that Fluttershy’s gonna give it a shot with Cheerilee. I know Cheerilee’s a great mare and all, but that doesn’t stop me from worrying. Fluttershy can be really delicate, and this is gonna be something new for her.”

Applejack smiled. “Maybe now ya understand how Ah felt ‘bout Apple Bloom gettin’ with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Rainbow tore her eyes away from the window to smile back at Applejack.

Applejack closed the distance between them to offer a consoling hug. “Everythin’s gonna turn out alright, sugarcube. Twilight will be back soon, and we can get this all taken care of.”

Rainbow nodded, nuzzling into the crook of Applejack’s neck and sighing. Everything would be okay.









Cloudchaser woke to the soothing sensation of a wing stroking her back. She made to lean back into it only to find her movement abruptly halted by the back of the chair she had dozed on. The wing retracted, causing Cloudchaser’s eyes to seek answers.

Flitter giggled at her sister’s usual morning drowsiness, something she had come to find quite endearing. “Morning, sleepy head.”

“Flitter? I…”

“You must have fallen asleep waiting for me,” Flitter explained. “Though I do appreciate the sentiment.”

Cloudchaser shook her head in an attempt to focus her mind better for what she needed to say. “Flitter, I’m gonna be honest. I’m not sure either of us are ready for a romance just yet.”

Flitter blinked. “Why not?”

Cloudchaser sighed. “I haven’t even had time to get over what happened with Thunderlane. I just came to you for support, and we ended up having sex!”

Flitter frowned. “You were the one who instigated, Cloud. I didn’t mean to take advantage of you.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Cloudchaser answered quickly. “I liked it, and I’m glad I was able to share it with you. But I feel like we started off all wrong. Like we skipped the marathon and jumped all the way to the finish line.”

Flitter smiled. “Then perhaps the gentlemarely thing to do would be to ask me on a date so we can start over.”

Cloudchaser groaned. “You know I want to, but we can’t do that, Flit. We’re sisters! Can you imagine what ponies would say if they saw us on a romantic date? We’re not just some random ponies anymore; Rainbow Dash left me in charge of all of Ponyville’s weather.”

“I never said we had to be public about it,” Flitter argued. “But if you’re really so concerned about your public image-“

“I’m not!” Cloudchaser refuted. “I don’t care what ponies think about me; I never have. It’s you I’m worried about. You’ve always been really sensitive about teasing. That’s why I always stood up for you, remember? I just can’t bear to think that this time I might be the cause of it all.”

Flitter’s face softened. “You sound like you’ve put a lot of thought into this.”

“Just in the heat of the moment,” Cloudchaser downplayed. “I’m not sure how much of it’s gonna stick with me when things cool off.”

“You’ve had a good night’s sleep to cool off already,” Flitter pointed out. “And that hasn’t seemed to have diminished the strength of your feelings at all.”

Cloudchaser frowned. “No, I guess it hasn’t, but…”

“Cloud, you know you can trust me. I’m not Thunderlane; I would never knowingly hurt you,” Flitter said with a consoling smile. “I know you want everything to be perfect, but doing nothing isn’t going to help either of us. If anything, that day apart gave you too much time to think, and now you’re making things seem too complicated again. So how about we simplify things? I love you. Do you love me?”

Cloudchaser smiled. “I do. I love you, Flitter, but-“

“Then why is it so bad that we acted on that love?” Flitter interrupted. “You’re already my sister and my best friend. What’s wrong with being marefriends, too?”

“Nothing,” Cloudchaser answered. “It’s the most perfect thing I could hope for.”

Flitter held back with all her might to refrain from kissing Cloudchaser, but found that her sister held no such restraints as she offered a peck on the cheek. Flitter kissed Cloudchaser’s nose in response, laughing as Cloudchaser had to contain a sneeze.

“I’m sorry for being so thick-headed all the time,” Cloudchaser apologized.

Flitter giggled. “It just makes it all the sweeter when I finally get through to you. But we should probably head on home and give Pinkie Pie her room back.”

Cloudchaser started. “Oh, crap, I totally forgot about that!”

Flitter laughed as Cloudchaser ran off in search of the pink mare, presumably to apologize. There were some things that would never change, and Flitter wouldn’t have it any other way.









“Okay, let’s think of what we have to deal with,” Rainbow said as they walked through the orchard. “We’ve got the Crusaders influenced into a pre-cutie mark relationship, and we still need to figure out what happened with Carrot Top and Derpy. I’ve got a pretty good guess, but I’m not sure how it would have worked if they never even saw her.”

“Well, it’s the only explanation that makes sense, sugarcube. Maybe Princess Celestia used some sorta invisibility spell ta hide herself,” Applejack suggested.

Rainbow frowned. “I guess that might work, but it still doesn’t explain why she did it in the first place. If she was willing to do it, why to it for just them? Was it some sort of freak accident, or was it on purpose?”

“We could always just ask her sometime, ya know,” Applejack reminded.

“But that would take all the fun out of the mystery! And how can we even be sure that was what happened, anyway?”

Applejack smirked. “Only one way ta find out.”

“There’s never just one way to do something, AJ,” Rainbow countered. “I mean, just look around Ponyville for a second. I’m pretty sure none of this would fly anywhere else.”

“That’s why we’re bringin’ it all ta Canterlot, right?” Applejack chuckled.

Rainbow cocked her head. “I don’t know; did we invite Flitter and Cloudchaser yet? Something tells me they would really upset some of those snooty types.”

“Well, even if the concept ain’t really unfamiliar, it still is a little off-puttin’ ta see it in practice, Ah’ve gotta admit.” Applejack shifted her hat out of her eyes. “Ah mean, if it makes ‘em happy, then Ah’ve got no place ta judge, but…”

“It’s definitely a little different,” Rainbow agreed. “But it’s still kinda hot.”

Applejack rolled her eyes. “Well, what about Mac and Rarity? That kinda felt like it came up outta nowheres.”

Rainbow shrugged. “I dunno. Rarity can get a little nutty when it comes to romance.”

“But even if Rarity’s been pinin’ after ‘im fer a while, how come Mac went along so quick? They ain’t exactly been takin’ it slow, either.”

“Neither have we,” Rainbow pointed out.

Applejack shook her head. “But that’s different when we’ve been best friends fer years. ‘Fore this all started up, the most Mac had ever seen o’ Rarity woulda been when he was out in the market.”

“Well, maybe Rarity just caught him at the right time,” Rainbow hypothesized. “It hasn’t really been too long since he and Cheerilee split.”

“And now they’re both at it again,” Applejack sighed. “Ah can see what’d bring Cheerilee and Fluttershy together, but it’s the same thing over again. It’s almost like Celestia put out a banishment notice fer any unpaired ponies by the end o’ the month.”

Rainbow’s brow furrowed. “Why would she do that?”

“It’s hypothetical, Rainbow,” Applejack chortled. “It’s what we were talkin’ about, wasn’t it? How all o’ Ponyville hooked up overnight?”

“Even Fluttershy’s in on it,” Rainbow laughed. “I know Twilight kinda has the excuse that she’s not here, but what about Pinkie? Why is she, of all ponies, still single in all this?”

Applejack shrugged. “Maybe she’s been havin’ some secret romance off ta the side without us knowin’. She sure seemed keen on secrets yesterday.”

“This is Pinkie we’re talking about. Why would she keep something like that a secret?” Rainbow challenged.

“Maybe she’s embarrassed,” Applejack offered.

Rainbow blinked. “Alright, now we’re just being silly. What else is Twilight gonna blame us for when she gets back?”

“Well, Ah ain’t sure it’s our fault, but that whole thing with Trixie seemed pretty nutty.”

“What, that she’s a herm?”

Applejack’s hoof met her face. “No, that she’d suddenly show up ta Ponyville a year later and open up a sex shop sayin’ it was some sorta old hobby. That don’t strike ya as the least bit funny?”

“It’s hilarious, but what does that have to do with what we’re talking about?”

Applejack sighed. “Ah meant that the other way. Ya know, the three questions about everythin’ in the past few days? Why here, why now, and what the hay?”

Rainbow shrugged aloofly. “She said it was complicated. We can figure that out later. For now, why question a stroke of luck like that?”

“’Cause it don’t make a lot of sense?”

“Neither does anything else we’ve talked about.” Rainbow heaved a great sigh after bucking a particularly stubborn tree. “Also, do you want rain today?”

Applejack snorted. “Might be nice later, Ah guess.”

Rainbow paused. “Is that a yes or a no? I can’t exactly tell a cloud to rain only if it feels like it.”

“Just a little drizzle,” Applejack decided. “Don’t want ya drownin’ mah trees.”

“I can do that,” Rainbow said confidently. “I’ll set it up before we head out for the day.”

Applejack nodded before returning to the task at hoof.









Fluttershy tended to her animals as usual, albeit with a bit more distraction. Something struck her as odd about Cheerilee’s advance yesterday, but she couldn’t quite put her hoof on it. Angel sensed her distant air and poked her with his empty food bowl, scowling slightly.

Fluttershy squeaked at the sudden touch, before realizing Angel was trying to get her attention. She sighed at his less-than-pleased expression. “I’m sorry, Angel. I guess I have a lot on my mind today.”

Angel shot her a disbelieving glare, renewing the hunger-fueled assault of his caretaker.

Fluttershy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She didn’t have the patience right now to deal with Angel’s impetuousness, merely fetching him a carrot from the cupboard.

Angel regarded the carrot dubiously, wary of this unexpected development. The quiet one did not often spurn his efforts, and when that was coupled with her seeming disinterest of him, he knew something was amiss. Sighing quietly, he set the carrot aside and hopped up onto her withers, poking the back of her head fixing her with the most concerned gaze he could muster.

Fluttershy turned her head to the odd sight of Angel offering his support. She patted him on the head with a wing. “It’s nothing bad, Angel. I just need some time to figure things out. Eat your carrot and set out food for the others, alright? I’m gonna go for a walk.”

Angel blinked; this was nearly unprecedented. Whatever was bothering the quiet one, it must have been something quite serious. He saluted a bit hesitantly, but the sentiment was enough for the quiet one to take her leave.

Angel sighed, sweeping his gaze over his fellow animals. This was going to be a long morning.









“Hey, Fluttershy, what are you doing out so early?”

Fluttershy froze at the greeting. She hadn’t thought of an excuse; it was the norm for her to stay in a bit later than others to spend time with her animal friends. And it was just her luck that Applejack and Rainbow Dash would be working the section of Sweet Apple Acres closest to the road she had to take into town. But then again, they were in a stable relationship; perhaps they could offer some advice?

Fluttershy sighed, as she felt like she had been doing a lot that morning. “Hi, girls. I’ve um…” Fluttershy looked around herself, conscious of her surroundings. “Could we, uh, talk somewhere a bit less open?”

Applejack blinked, looking to Rainbow, who shrugged. Seeing no reason to deny her request, they led the timid pegasus deeper into the orchard, away from prying eyes and ears.

“What’s up, Fluttershy?” Rainbow prompted as they came to a halt at the base of a particularly thick trunk.

Fluttershy averted her gaze. “I’ve been thinking about Cheerilee.”

Rainbow brightened. “What kind of thoughts?”

Applejack frowned, whapping her marefriend lightly with her tail. “What she means ta say is: how can we help ya?”

“Well, like I said, I’ve been thinking about her, and, well…” Fluttershy trailed off. “I guess what I want to know is what brought this all on, and why she wants me.”

Applejack offered her a sympathetic smile. “Ya ain’t gettin’ nowheres thinkin’ like that, trust me. Nopony’s ever gonna understand her perfectly ‘cept herself.” Applejack flicked her gaze to Rainbow briefly. “Instead o’ worryin’ about that stuff ya can’t ever change, ya should be thinkin’ about what you feel about it.”

Fluttershy frowned, thinking. “I… I don’t know. It all came on so suddenly, I’m not sure what to think.”

“Then what do you want to think?” Rainbow inquired.

Fluttershy cocked her head at that. “I’m not sure. I’ve never been in a relationship before.”

“What about that one time with Thunderlane?” Rainbow prodded.

Fluttershy’s mouth drew a line. “I don’t like to think about that.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Doesn’t really apply to a mare anyway.”

“Well, think about what ya might feel fer Cheerilee,” Applejack suggested. “Ya have quite a lot in common. That’s usually a pretty good start.”

Fluttershy put a hoof to her chin, but offered no response.

“Are you sure it really came out of nowhere?” Rainbow asked. “There must have been something different the last couple days.”

“Well, with Rarity spending most of her time with Mac now, Cheerilee has been really great to talk to,” Fluttershy admitted with a small blush. “I guess she did seem a little eager at times, but I never thought she would have done something like this.”

“And all of this waits until Twilight leaves for Canterlot,” Rainbow concluded. “You don’t think she was using some kind of spell, do you?”

Applejack fixed Rainbow with a blank stare. “We’ve been over this, Dash. If it was somethin’ Twilight was doin’, it woulda happened on her first trip out.”

“But this is the longest one I can remember!” Rainbow insisted. “Can’t it at least be a possibility?”

Fluttershy blinked at the sudden derailment of their conversation. “I’m sorry, what are we talking about now?”

“Me and AJ are on a quest to figure out why Ponyville exploded into romance,” Rainbow answered before Applejack could do more than open her mouth.

Applejack rolled her eyes. “We didn’t start talkin’ ta Fluttershy just ta dump our problems on her.”

Fluttershy blinked again. “The only new couples I know are you two and Rarity and Big Macintosh.”

“Then you’re missing the craziest ones!” Rainbow snickered. “You remember Flitter and Cloudchaser from tornado duty a couple years back?”

Fluttershy cocked her head. “I thought they were twins.”

“They are.” Rainbow grinned. “But I think my favorite has to be the Crusaders, ‘cause that was totally our fault.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “Rainbow, you know how impressionable fillies can be! How could you be so careless?”

“It’s not like they’re complaining about it,” Rainbow laughed. “And besides, they’re about the age when they’d start dating, anyway.”

“But three-pony relationships can be very unstable!” Fluttershy went on. “Can you imagine what it would do to their friendship if it didn’t work out, or worse, if one of them got excluded?”

Rainbow blinked. “Calm down, Fluttershy. We’re talking about the Cutie Mark Crusaders here. You know, Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle? It’s gonna take a lot more than an awkward romance to tear those three apart.”

Fluttershy sighed, unable to deny the truth to Rainbow’s words.

“So, you done now? Can we get back to what we were doing?” Applejack tested the waters.

Rainbow’s brow furrowed. “What were we doing?”

Applejack face-hoofed before turning back to Fluttershy. “So, now that ya know everythin’ that’s been goin’ on, ya think ya have any better idea how ta deal with Cheerilee?”

Fluttershy shook her head. “I think I need to give it more thought. Thanks for uh, catching me up, I guess.”

“Don’t mention it,” Rainbow said with a bit more pride than the phrase warranted.

Fluttershy took her leave and made her way into Ponyville, hearing Applejack and Rainbow Dash get back to work behind her. She could only hope there wouldn’t be any more surprises waiting for her in town.









Scootaloo paced around in a buzz, both in her wings and mind. Never had she felt so close to her cutie mark than she did now. All she had to do was find Rainbow Dash, demand flying lessons, and she was in the clear!

Now if only the other two ponies it concerned would wake up already.

Scootaloo groaned in frustration. “Come on, guys, you can’t just sleep all day!”

Sweetie Belle’s ear twitched in her sleep, though the only thing she managed to succeed in doing was cuddle up closer to Apple Bloom and mumble something about Scootaloo being cute.

Scootaloo sat down at the foot of the bed, crossing her forehooves and sighing impatiently. “Am I really gonna have to do this?”

A soft snore from Apple Bloom hinted toward an affirmative.

Scootaloo glanced between the ticking clock and her peacefully sleeping fillyfriends a few times before coming to a decision. “Sometimes love is tough,” Scootaloo intoned before spreading her wings and beginning her feathery assault of the slumbering fillies’ most ticklish areas. For Sweetie Belle it was under her chin, and for Apple Bloom it was her belly.

Smiles appeared almost instantly on their faces as they tried to brush the wings away, but Scootaloo held fast. They slowly started up in giggles, and were surely mere seconds away from waking. But before she could tickle them past the point of no return, her wings suddenly gave out under the strain and she fell forward onto Apple Bloom’s belly, eliciting a gasp from its owner.

Scootaloo panted, trying to figure out why her wings betrayed her. She’d been making sure to train every day since her first lesson, so she couldn’t be out of practice. She poked one of the limp appendages, noting how little strength it still held. This didn’t make any sense.

“You alright, Scoot?” Apple Bloom asked, startling the brooding pegasus.

“Oh, hey, you’re awake,” Scootaloo gasped, trying to steady her breathing. “Now we can go find Rainbow Dash and – oh Luna,” Scootaloo felt nausea build up inside her, having to swallow to keep the bile from rising in her throat. “Okay, I… I’m good.”

Apple Bloom frowned. “You sure? Ya don’ look so good.”

Scootaloo snorted weakly. “Please, filly, I always look good.”

“Ah’m startin’ ta worry here, Scoot,” Apple Bloom murmured, making sure not to disturb Sweetie Belle as she lifted a hoof to brush Scootaloo’s mane out of her face. “Ya sure ya were really up fer last night?”

Scootaloo’s face hardened. “I’m fine. Just wake up Sweetie Belle and we’ll get going.”

Apple Bloom hesitated, wary of tackling the subject of breakfast. She watched as Scootaloo slumped off the bed and exited the room with shaky hoofsteps. Apple Bloom sighed; that could wait for later, she supposed.









Fluttershy walked through Ponyville with confidence that the fates were not conspiring against her. Unfortunately for her, this didn’t happen to be the case, as from around the corner appeared none other than Twilight’s old rival, Trixie.

Fluttershy gasped, looking for some place to hide, but she was caught in the open, and what few alleyways there were on the street were much too far away. Of course, had she remembered she was, in fact, a pegasus, this whole mess could have been avoided, and Trixie would not be approaching her with a spark of recognition in her eye.

“You’re another of Twilight Sparkle’s friends, right?” Trixie greeted.

Fluttershy relaxed slightly. That was certainly not the hostility she was expecting. Come to think of it, she remembered Twilight telling her after Trixie’s last visit to Ponyville that Trixie had asked for forgiveness. She noticed for the first time that Trixie lacked her old get-up, as well. Perhaps she was here to make amends?

Trixie was not dissuaded by Fluttershy’s silence. “Surely you must remember me? The great and…” Trixie hesitated, “humble Trixie.”

Fluttershy smiled. “I see you’re still having a little trouble with the reformation.”

“And I suppose I deserve the looks I get around town,” Trixie sighed. “But it’s impolite to bother you with my troubles. I’m afraid that, in my time here, I never got your name.”

“It’s Fluttershy,” Fluttershy answered. “I can’t say I was expecting to see you back here.”

“But you receive me without judgment for my past wrongs,” Trixie smiled. “One of my greatest hopes in choosing to settle here.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “Oh my goodness, I had no idea you were staying here! Have you been able to settle in properly yet?”

“Well enough, for now,” Trixie assured. “I can always live out of my old cart, but I am still seeking a more permanent residence.”

“I’m sure somepony wouldn’t mind taking you in,” Fluttershy offered. “Like Twilight maybe. Sometimes I feel like she could use a little more companionship since she’s spending so much time at home lately. I know she has Spike and Owlowiscious, but I haven’t even seen her around Ponyville for a few days now, and I’m starting to get worried.”

“Have you checked on her recently?” Trixie asked.

Fluttershy frowned. “No, I guess I haven’t, but it’s not unusual for her to get into ruts like this. She’s just had so much responsibility dumped on her since her coronation; I think she gets overwhelmed sometimes.”

“Well if it’s in both our best interests, why not pay her a visit?” Trixie suggested, unable to keep a trill of excitement out of her voice.

Fluttershy chuckled at her enthusiasm. “Alright, if you insist.”









It had taken all her cunning, and most of her energy, but Apple Bloom had successfully woken Sweetie Belle, without having her fall back asleep five seconds later this time. Victorious, and in desperate need of sustenance, Apple Bloom led the way downstairs, expecting to see Scootaloo waiting for them impatiently, but she was nowhere to be seen.

“Good morning!” Derpy greeted with a wave.

Carrot Top turned around to greet them with a smile, but was given pause when Scootaloo was not among them.

“Scoot not come down yet?” Apple Bloom asked, getting a little frustrated.

Carrot Top shook her head. “Is everything alright?”

“Jes dandy,” Apple Bloom sighed before marching back up the stairs. Before she could start searching various rooms, an odd sound came from the bathroom, like a restrained hiccup of sorts. Rolling her eyes, Apple Bloom knocked on the door.

Scootaloo yelped at the sudden sound, nearly falling face-first into the toilet she was hovering over. “Who is it?”

“Who do ya think?” Apple Bloom answered irritably. “Ah know somethin’s wrong, and if it’s somethin’ we can help ya with and yer keepin’ it from us ‘cause o’ some stubborn pride, Ah-“

“It’s not like that, Apple Bloom! You wouldn’t understand. I don’t even understand. So please, just-“ Scootaloo dry-heaved into the toilet, “-leave me alone.”

Apple Bloom took a deep breath. “Alright. Come on down whenever ya feel like. Breakfast’s waitin’.”

Apple Bloom turned around to see Sweetie Belle standing there, looking very concerned for Scootaloo’s wellbeing. “Is she gonna be okay, Apple Bloom?”

Apple Bloom shook her head. “Ah have no idea, Sweetie Belle. But Ah sure hope so.”

“You don’t think she’s sick, do you?” Sweetie Belle gasped. “You don’t think she caught an infection?”

Apple Bloom cocked a brow. “Whatever it is yer goin’ on about, Ah’m sure it ain’t that.”

“But we didn’t use any protection last night!” Sweetie Belle fretted.

“Protection from what, the wind? Ain’t like we weren’t there with ‘er.”

“But she was the only one who-“

Apple Bloom sighed. “That’s enough o’ that, Belle. Ya can’t just believe everythin’ yer sister tells ya.”

“But what if it’s true and we could have stopped it?”

“Then ya can blame me,” Apple Bloom muttered. “Now come on, breakfast’s gettin’ colder the longer we wait here.”

Sweetie Belle frowned, following with no small amount of hesitation.









“So how long have you been here in Ponyville?” Fluttershy asked as she and Trixie made their way to the Golden Oaks Library.

“Only a couple days,” Trixie explained. “Pinkie Pie has been… helping me get integrated.”

“She does that,” Fluttershy laughed. “You’ll get used to it.”

Trixie waited patiently as Fluttershy reached a hoof to knock at Twilight’s door, but no answer was forthcoming. She tried again, but there was yet more silence. Fluttershy tried the door and found it swung in unlocked.

“That’s strange. Usually Twilight locks her door when she goes out,” Fluttershy frowned. She took a look inside to find everything intact and nothing missing, save the mare in question.

“Perhaps she has impeccable timing?” Trixie suggested.

Fluttershy made her way upstairs in place of an answer to find Spike and Owlowiscious present, though both were asleep. Knowing she’d have better luck with the former, she trotted up to Spike’s basket and jostled him awake.

“Huh? Twilight?” Spike muttered, looking around blearily before his eyes focused on Fluttershy. “Oh, hi Fluttershy. What’s up?”

“Do you know where Twilight is?” Fluttershy asked, wasting no time with pleasantries.

Spike blinked. “She’s still up in Canterlot. But she left me in charge of the library while she’s gone. So, you need anything?”

Fluttershy sighed, wondering why she had been out of the loop. “You could say that, though I would prefer if Twilight was here, too. You see, um…” Fluttershy hesitated. “I really don’t know how to say this any other way, so come on out, Trixie.”

Trixie did as she was told, ascending the last few stairs to come into their line of sight.

Spike gasped. “What’s she doing here? Oh, man, where’s Twilight when you need her?”

Fluttershy frowned. “Trixie’s here because she wants to settle down, and she chose Ponyville because of the kindness and forgiveness of its villagers,” Fluttershy looked at Spike meaningfully.

“Well, I still don’t like it, but if we’re not gonna be able to get rid of her…”

Fluttershy sighed, disappointed at Spike’s reaction, though she could not have hoped for much more. She turned to Trixie, who seemed a bit downtrodden, herself, and threw a hoof over her shoulders in support. “Yes, Trixie’s not going anywhere. In fact, since she has no place to stay yet, I was going to suggest she room here, with Twilight.”

Spike jumped out of his basket. “What! You expect me to share a house with… her?”

“You thought the same way about Owlowiscious, and that turned out alright,” Fluttershy reminded.

“That’s different!” Spike protested. “He never tried to show up Ponyville, or banish Twilight! You expect me to just forget all that?”

“Not forget, Spike. Forgive,” Fluttershy admonished. “I’ve forgiven her, and so has Twilight. Pinkie Pie has been helping her as she would any other new resident, and I’m sure Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Rarity have all found it within themselves, too.”

Trixie chuckled nervously. “About that, actually…”

Fluttershy turned a questioning eye to Trixie.

“You know what, never mind. It wouldn’t be appropriate to discuss that in front of… children,” Trixie smirked slightly.

“Why would…” Fluttershy blushed. “Oh, I see.”

Spike sighed. At least it was better than being called a baby.

“Spike, please, this is really important,” Fluttershy begged. “I saw it in her eyes, Trixie really wants to live here in the library, and you’re the only one saying no.”

“How do you know? You haven’t even talked to Twilight yet!” Spike countered. “If Twilight says yes, then I guess my claws are tied, but she’s not even here, so-“

“Spike, I’m back!”

Trixie perked up at the sound of Twilight’s voice, having to restrain herself from rushing down the stairs, and instead followed impatiently behind Fluttershy, who moved much too slowly for such an occasion. She felt a scrabbling at her hooves as Spike pushed ahead between their legs and clutched Twilight’s foreleg.

“Twilight! You’d never believe me, but Trixie’s back and she wants to live here with us so she can steal your crown and become princess!”

Twilight blinked, losing control of her luggage in her confusion. “Spike, what did I tell you about sugar after midnight?”

“But it’s true! Fluttershy came in and tried to get me to agree to it all. Look!”

Fluttershy emerged from the stairwell, smiling. “Twilight, your timing couldn’t be better,” Fluttershy said before coming up to hug her wayward friend.

Twilight returned the hug a bit awkwardly, scanning the room for any signs of Trixie, when she spotted a hint of blue at the base of the stairs. As if sensing her gaze, Trixie stepped out of the shadows with a meek smile on her face. “Trixie, what are you doing here? I thought you were still out traveling the world.”

“Well, I was,” Trixie laughed awkwardly. “And I’m terribly sorry I missed your coronation; I was out in the griffin lands, you see, and…”

Twilight smiled, breaking away from Fluttershy’s hug to give Trixie a playful shove. “So what brought you back to Ponyville?”

“Nothing bad, I assure you,” Trixie began, shooting a glance at Spike. “It’s just that, well, I started to grow tired of the traveling life, and I thought it would be nice if I could, you know, settle down somewhere.”

Twilight blinked. “Then why did you choose Ponyville? The townsponies haven’t been giving you any trouble, have they?”

“Apart from the occasional glares, no,” Trixie assured. “I certainly haven’t come to bodily harm yet. I even managed to somehow work my way into the good graces of all your friends.”

Twilight’s brow rose as a smirk came to her face. “Even Rainbow Dash? How did you manage that?”

“Well, um, perhaps we could talk about that somewhere a little more private, if you wouldn’t mind,” Trixie smiled hopefully. “I have quite a lot to tell you, actually.”

Twilight smiled back. “Sure, we can go up to my room. Owlowiscious should be asleep by now, but he wouldn’t give us much trouble anyway.”

Trixie nodded gratefully, following Twilight upstairs as Spike looked on positively slack-jawed.

“So, about your claws being tied…” Fluttershy whispered in Spike’s ear.









Around the time breakfast was wrapping up was when a heavy-hoofed Scootaloo came bumbling down the stairs. Her coat looked paler than usual, and her shuffling gait was a clear departure from normalcy.

“You okay, Scoot? Any paler and you might start to look like me,” Derpy reached over to give Scootaloo’s mane a ruffle, not that it needed one; it barely managed to hang limply over her face.

“Scoot, you look awful,” Carrot Top agreed. “You should stay inside today-“

“No!” Scootaloo protested. “I’m fine, and I’m gonna show Rainbow Dash just how much I’ve been practicing, and I’m gonna finally get my cutie mark!” Scootaloo bolted, and the slamming of the front door resonated throughout the house.

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom shared a look before excusing themselves from the table. Neither knew what had gotten into Scootaloo today, but both knew that they had to put a stop to it.

Scootaloo’s tramped trail was found easily enough, and they knew where she would be headed anyway, but despite her current state, Scootaloo had taken off at quite a clip. The trail winded and doubled back on itself in places, though whether that was an attempt to throw them off or a result of her apparent illness was unclear.

Before long, the barn of Sweet Apple Acres became visible through the trees, and they could just barely make out splotches of blue and orange. They came upon the scene just in time before they slipped away through the trees.

“Scoot, wait, ya don’t have ta do this!” Apple Bloom called.

Scootaloo spun around with a determined scowl on her face. “Of course I do. It’s for my cutie mark, guys! Isn’t that what we’ve always been about?”

“But you don’t have to do it right now,” Sweetie Belle pleaded.

“And what if something happens tomorrow and I never get another shot? I can’t have that happen, no matter what it’s gonna do to me!”

Before they could press the argument, Scootaloo slipped away to catch up to Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle gave chase, going on Apple Bloom’s unspoken hunch of where they might be headed.

“How long was that?”

“Uh, only about three seconds. You don’t look so good, Scoot, are you sure-“

“How about that time?”

“Down to two.”

“Well, then how about this?”

“Scoot, wait!”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle emerged from the trees just in time to see Scootaloo fling herself from the tallest hill in the orchard and flare her wings. They watched in horror as Scootaloo began to frantically flap her wings in an attempt to gain altitude, though the effort had her declining at an alarming rate. With one last weak flap, Scootaloo fell from the sky like deadweight.

Seizing the moment, Rainbow took off like a jet and was barely able to catch Scootaloo in her outstretched hooves, though being that they were along the ground did little to break her fall. Rainbow prayed that the cracking sound had been her mind playing tricks on her as she cradled Scootaloo as gently as she could in her hooves while still ensuring her grip.

“I’ve gotta take Scoot to the hospital,” Rainbow said, voice strained. “AJ, you go round up Carrot and Derpy.”

“What about us?” Apple Bloom tried to put in, but Rainbow was already off. Applejack, however, had the capacity to recognize her sister’s voice if nothing else.

“Yer comin’ with me,” Applejack grunted, flinging them onto her back with her tail and taking off at a gallop. It was all Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom could do to hold on.

“But what about Scootaloo?” Sweetie Belle protested.

“Ya ain’t never gonna catch Rainbow, and the carrot farm ain’t too far outta the way,” Applejack relayed, never breaking her stride. “Ah know it seems bad now, but yer little friend’s in the most capable hooves Ah’ve ever known.”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle huddled together on Applejack’s withers, trying to calm their heavy breathing. “We… we coulda stopped this,” Apple Bloom lamented.

“This is no time to be placing blame, Apple Bloom,” Sweetie Belle soothed. “Scoot needs us right now, and we have to be there for her.”

Apple Bloom took a deep breath. “Ya think she’s gonna be okay?”

Sweetie Belle offered a hopeful smile. “Hey, this is Scootaloo we’re talking about.”

Apple Bloom managed a smile back before they were jostled by a sudden stop, tumbling off of their transport’s back into a heap.

Applejack’s frantic knocking reached their ears. “Carrot, Derpy, open up! We gotta get ta the hospital! It’s Scootaloo.”

In an instant, Derpy and Carrot Top were at the door. Derpy stopped to gather Sweetie Belle onto her back, while Carrot Top took Apple Bloom as Applejack broke off at a frenzied pace. They could only hope Rainbow arrived in time.









“Doctor! I need a doctor!” Rainbow called out as she burst through the front door, holding out the limp form of Scootaloo.

A stretcher was quickly brought out, which she carefully laid Scootaloo upon.

“Don’t worry, she’s in capable hooves now,” the nurse assured before taking off to the emergency room.

Rainbow made to follow, but she was stopped by the receptionist, who had vacated the desk. “It would be best if you gave them space to work.”

Rainbow sighed, nodding as she took a seat to wait for Applejack. While her mind wandered, she wondered how many times a day something like this happened. They didn’t sound cold, but their lines did seem practiced. A glance over to the help desk revealed that the receptionist had retaken her position. She returned the glance with a smile that Rainbow knew had seen thousands of applications however genuine it looked.

“Would it kill anypony to show some character around here?” Rainbow muttered under her breath, for she knew the tired response she would get if she was overheard. We have to remain as bland as possible so we don’t upset our patients or their families. Come on, this isn’t Canterlot, ponies.

Rainbow’s ears perked up as she heard the front door swing open, looking up to see Applejack, alone, looking around frantically. Smiling, Rainbow got up from her seat to sidle up next to her and place a kiss on her cheek.

Applejack returned the greeting. “How is she?”

Rainbow’s face fell slightly. “I have no idea. They just took her in and told me not to follow.”

Applejack sighed, turning to face Rainbow fully. “Well, might as well make ourselves comfy while we wait.”

Rainbow chuckled before finally noticing that Applejack arrived alone. “Where’s everypony else?”

Applejack paused halfway to the bench, looking back to inspect the front door critically. “Ah thought they were right behind me.”

“You really expected them to be able to keep up with you?” Rainbow asked with a knowing glint in her eye.

Applejack hesitated, offering no immediate response.

Rainbow giggled at Applejack’s expression, feeling just a little bit of her anxiety wash away. Scootaloo was a hardy filly; it would take a whole lot more than this to keep her down. And with Applejack there with her, offering a strong shoulder to lean on, Rainbow got the feeling that everything would turn out alright.









Trixie hesitated at the threshold of Twilight’s room, uncertain about invading such a personal area. This uncertainty was quickly dispelled by Twilight, who beckoned her inside before shutting the door behind them.

“So, you were saying?” Twilight prompted innocently.

Trixie grinned sheepishly. “Well, I uh, let’s just say I… helped them find new ways to show their love to each other.”

Twilight cocked a brow. “And you couldn’t say that in front of Spike why?”

Trixie grinned harder. “I mean that in the more… intimate sense.”

Twilight blinked. “I thought they were already pretty intimate with each other.”

“Deeper than that.” Trixie gulped. “You know, like… sexually.”

Twilight’s eyes widened as she finally comprehended. “You mean you invaded their relationship?”

Trixie recoiled. “What? No, I’m just trying to find a way to tell you that I own a sex shop and I sold your friends some toys.”

“Oh,” Twilight said. A delayed blush quickly overtook her face as she considered this piece of information. “That… that definitely isn’t something we need Spike hearing.”

“Assuming he knows anything about it at all,” Trixie wondered aloud, hoping to divert the subject.

Twilight frowned. “I haven’t talked to him about it, but I don’t know what he does when I’m not around.”

“A true conundrum to be sure,” Trixie stated. “Have you ever thought of approaching him about the subject?”

Twilight shook her head. “I know I’m the closest thing he has to a mother, but I can’t shake the feeling of how… weird that would be. Especially after just having come back from Canterlot.”

“How were things there, by the way?” Trixie asked, mildly curious.

Twilight waved a hoof dismissively. “Oh, just some boring political troubles I’m sure you wouldn’t want to hear about.”

“Do you know what caused them?” Trixie prodded.

“Well, political issues rarely have a true cause behind them,” Twilight explained. “Unless you count things like money, power, leverage… But nothing with any amount of clear definition. Or at least not usually.”

Trixie sensed there was something more. “Is it possible this time could be different?”

Twilight frowned. “We have a hunch about what caused the divide between brutal honesty and fierce loyalty.”

Trixie blinked. “You’re saying there was an uprising?”

“To some extent, yes. Nothing violent before we got a hold of it,” Twilight assured. “Perhaps a better term would be… political unrest.”

“Unrest about what, exactly?” Trixie inquired, now legitimately interested.

“Just about everything, really,” Twilight sighed. “There were ponies who expressed their opinions about the social castes, unemployment, poverty and whatever else wasn’t already being done to alleviate the problems. And the other side of it stood by, well, us.” Twilight shuddered, ruffling her wings slightly.

Trixie eyed the appendages with a small amount of envy before shaking the thought away. “So it was all about defending the lower class, then?”

Twilight grunted. “If only it had been that simple. Honesty goes both ways. There were those upper-class ponies who certainly didn’t pull any punches, letting everypony know just how much they stood to profit on the suffering of others.”

“So I assume there was some divide among the lower class, as well?” Trixie smiled sadly.

“And that’s not even touching on the middle class,” Twilight groaned. “I’m just glad it died down before we had to do anything extreme.”

“Died down? Surely these issues were pressing enough to not solve themselves?”

“You’d think that, but it all falls into place when you think about that hunch the princesses and I had,” Twilight smirked. “Because sometimes those two can be more trouble than they’re worth.”

Trixie blinked. “Are we still talking about Applejack and Rainbow Dash?”

Twilight laughed. “Who else embodies the spirits of honesty and loyalty?”

Trixie frowned. “So you’re saying that they’re to blame for the uprising?”

“Not directly, or through any means they’re yet aware of,” Twilight explained. “You know what happens when elements are allowed to bond, right?”

“I’m afraid I’m not very well versed on the subject,” Trixie said sheepishly.

Twilight smiled. “Well then, I’ll be happy to share my knowledge with you. As you may have guessed, there are six elements, and each is bonded to one of my friends. Applejack embodies honesty, Rainbow Dash is loyalty-“

“Not the other way around?” Trixie interrupted. “I do seem to recall that Applejack confronted me to stand up for her friends, while Rainbow Dash was more concerned with the truth behind my powers. Quite the tongue on her, as well.”

Twilight chuckled. “It is true that no two elements are as much alike as honesty and loyalty. Often they seem to go hoof in hoof-“

“Like on a date,” Trixie cut in.

Twilight frowned. “Not what I meant, but in this case, also applicable. Anyway, Fluttershy holds the element of kindness, Rarity’s element is generosity, and Pinkie Pie’s is, predictably, laughter. I do believe I have demonstrated my own on multiple occasions.”

Trixie cocked her head. “Which is…?”

Twilight blinked. “Magic. The sixth and most powerful element.”

“Unorthodox, but it does fit you,” Trixie said, brow furrowing. “But as far as I know, magic is not a necessary element of friendship. Applejack and Rainbow Dash go even deeper than that, but neither of them is a unicorn.”

“But friendship is magic!” Twilight argued. “Magic draws its power from all the other elements and acts as a hub to bind them all together. Without magic as a centerpiece, the elements couldn’t be combined!”

“Fitting for a ruler,” Trixie mused. “But you say that the elements cannot be bound without magic…”

“With the exception of honesty and loyalty,” Twilight extrapolated. “You see, the elements of harmony share many fundaments with the more mundane chemical elements, like hydrogen, oxygen and carbon. The thing that matters here is that not all are compatible in a one to one ratio, and seeing as how there can never be more than one of an element of harmony, they require the aid of a mediator of sorts. Coincidentally or not, the only pair that can be made otherwise is honesty and loyalty.”

“So if the element of magic serves as a hub for the other elements to bond to, and there only exist five other elements, why then does the symbolic star have six points?” Trixie inquired.

“I asked Princess Celestia about that once, but I never quite understood her answer,” Twilight began.

“And what was it?” Trixie prodded.

Twilight frowned. “She said that the sixth point of the star was special in that it could only facilitate the closest of bonds, but also that it can bond with any one thing. So that led me to believe that it was somehow flexible and could create that closest bond with anything. But then that didn’t make any sense as to how it remains unoccupied. But if one condition prevents the other, then it has no point!”

“It doesn’t have to have a point if it is the point,” Trixie intoned.

Twilight opened her mouth only to close it again when no words came out. “I don’t even know how to respond to that. Was that some sort of joke, or were you being serious?”

“Is it not possible to be thought provoking with frivolity?” Trixie returned.

“No, I guess not, because I think you just did that,” Twilight groaned. “Do you understand what she’s talking about?”

Trixie laughed. “I have a hunch, but it would not be appropriate to discuss it now. Instead, perhaps we should go back to our initial discussion of what happens when the elements are allowed to bond.”

“Oh, right,” Twilight perked up. “Sorry, I just… Anyway, like in the old story of the mare in the moon, the elements can be used to create a surge of the most powerful magic known to ponykind. So far, the only documented results of these surges have been banishment and petrification.”

“That doesn’t sound very friendly,” Trixie remarked.

“No, but under the circumstances, they were necessary,” Twilight defended. “And those were conscious efforts involving all six elements with clear direction.”

“Whereas in this case, it was an accident in the heat of the moment between two with no direction to speak of,” Trixie finished, smirking.

“This caused the surge to radiate in a five mile radius from Ponyville. And of course, knowing those two, it was bound to turn into a heated argument somewhere,” Twilight shook her head.

“And a ‘heated argument’ elsewhere, I’m sure,” Trixie sniggered.

Twilight blinked several times as a fierce blush overcame her. “I-I can’t say I ever thought of that,” she stammered.

Trixie laughed ruthlessly, “You must have, because I sure didn’t specify.”

“Well, your tone didn’t leave much room for imagination!” Twilight protested.

“I’m sure your troubles in Canterlot were only so bad because of its proximity to Ponyville,” Trixie assured between giggles.

Twilight’s eyes widened as a thought occurred to her. “And there’s only one place closer to Ponyville than Canterlot. And I didn’t see any signs of bedlam in the streets.” Twilight’s voice raised several octaves as she went on. “You don’t suppose that…”

“Yes, I’m sure you missed out on all the fun,” Trixie barely managed amidst raucous laughter.

Twilight groaned, covering her burning blush with her hooves.









“Rainbow Dash?”

Rainbow lifted her head from Applejack’s back. It took her a moment, but she recognized the doctor who had taken care of her back when she’d first gotten interested in Daring Do. Prodding her dozing marefriend until she got a response, the two of them got to their hooves to answer the call.

The doctor smiled at them. “We’ve gotten Scootaloo stabilized. She’s resting now, if you’d like to see her.”

“Yes, of course!” Rainbow insisted, shaking off her drowsiness. Applejack was a little slower on the uptake, but found herself dragged along by the hoof all the same. But the closer they got to where Scootaloo was resting, the further Rainbow’s mood dipped, until Applejack had to be the one keeping the pace instead.

“She’s just in here,” the doctor said, opening a door. “You did well getting her here so quickly. Now, if you’ll excuse me while we compile our findings.”

Rainbow wasn’t listening, however, as she approached the bed. “Should have known this would all blow up on us eventually,” Rainbow sighed, caressing Scootaloo’s sleeping face. “What the hell kinda trouble have you gotten yourself into this time, Scoot?”

“It ain’t yer fault, sugarcube,” Applejack soothed. “Ya never coulda known somethin’ like this woulda happened.”

“Of course it’s my fault!” Rainbow protested. “I’m the one who got her started on this in the first place! I made her abandon her home for three years, and now she goes and puts herself in the hospital just to try and impress me! Even her wings are all busted!”

Applejack winced, casting her gaze over the sleeping filly, but the only thing that seemed amiss was the casts binding her wings. “The doc said she’d be alright. And Ah’m not gonna just stand by while ya beat yerself up,” Applejack soothed, walking up to rub a hoof across Rainbow’s back. “Ah know what that can do to ya.”

Rainbow sighed, looking very vulnerable as she tore her gaze from Scootaloo and fixed it upon Applejack. “You sure she’s gonna be okay?”

Applejack nodded, offering a smile. “And Ah’m sure it weren’t nothin’ ya coulda stopped.”

Rainbow nodded back before slumping against Applejack’s chest. Applejack happily wrapped her marefriend in a loving hug, kissing her gently on the forehead.  Utilizing her impressive strength, she lifted Rainbow off the ground, chuckling as the movement made their hips collide, and carried her over to a chair in the far corner of the room.

Rainbow, now sitting atop Applejack’s lap like an oversized foal, expressed her appreciation of the new position by cuddling in closer and closing her eyes with a dopey grin plastered across her face.

That moment so happened to be the one that Derpy, Carrot Top, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle intruded upon in their haste to see Scootaloo. Applejack was thankful that Scootaloo lacked a roommate, as the room started up in concerned babble.

“She’s gonna be just fine,” Applejack assured, projecting her voice. “Now why don’t you all settle down before ya-“

“Wha…? Where am I?”

“-wake her,” Applejack finished with a sigh.

Rainbow quickly dismounted Applejack’s lap to join in crowding around Scootaloo’s bed. Scootaloo smiled when she saw Rainbow among the ponies assembled. “Hey, Rainbow Dash. Did I blow you away and get my cutie mark?”

Rainbow smiled sadly. “Afraid not, Scoot. You took a pretty nasty fall, and by the looks of it, broke both your wings.”

Scootaloo jolted upright, scanning her sides and groaning when she saw the casts. “Guess I’m gonna have to wait a while to try again. Maybe last night wasn’t such a great idea after all.”

“What were we just tryin’ ta tell ya?” Apple Bloom asked, reaching out a hoof to brush against Scootaloo’s face.

Scootaloo frowned. “I’m really sorry I didn’t listen to you guys. Probably would have saved all of us a lot of trouble.”

“And you wouldn’t have to be in the hospital,” Sweetie Belle added. “You could be resting at home, and we could be helping you get better. Rarity always tells me how romantic that is in her novels.”

Scootaloo snorted in amusement. “Yeah, because Apple Bloom and I wouldn’t be bored to tears in one of those.”

“Ah don’t know, it might be nice fer a change,” Apple Bloom countered. “Ya know, just relaxin’ at home and not havin’ ta worry about our cutie marks.”

“But we just figured out how to get them!” Scootaloo protested.

Apple Bloom cocked a brow. “You sure about that, now? How many times outta ten does somethin’ related ta yer cutie mark put ya in a hospital?”

“Actually…”

“Excludin’ the obvious,” Apple Bloom cut Rainbow Dash’s assertion off.

Scootaloo cast her gaze to her hooves. “Yeah, I guess.”

“So what’s all this about last night, now?” Rainbow spoke up.

Scootaloo sighed. “Well, I’d been training really hard since our first flight lesson whenever I got the time to spare. And yesterday, me and the girls finally figured out how to get our cutie marks, and, well, I guess I got a little caught up in the excitement.”

Rainbow motioned a hoof for her to continue, not entirely sure she liked where this was going.

“I felt so close; I just had to show them. And maybe, you know, show off a bit, too,” Scootaloo sighed again. “But I couldn’t really do much, and I got frustrated. These are the fillies I love here, and I wasn’t about to let the night end like that. So I pushed myself harder than I ever had before, and I broke my old five second hovering record! But after that, I felt… weak. This morning, it took a little while, but when it hit me I felt… terrible. Exhausted, nauseous, all kinds of bad stuff, and I still didn’t have my cutie mark after all that.

“I tried to keep it from the girls so they wouldn’t hold me back, but I just ended up hurting them. I thought that maybe if you were there, too, it would give me what I needed to finally get my mark, but…”

The doctor chose that moment to come by with news of Scootaloo’s health. “You’ve got yourself in quite a state, little filly. Exhaustion, dehydration, and wings in one of the worst states I’ve seen. It’s a wonder you stayed conscious as long as you did. It certainly doesn’t help that you over-exerted yourself in a capacity your body is barely capable of.”

Scootaloo winced, casting a worried eye to Rainbow.

Rainbow’s attention was fixed firmly on the doctor however. “What do you mean by that?”

The doctor blinked. “You mean to tell me you never knew of Scootaloo’s disability?”

“Please, don’t-“

“Disability?” Rainbow interrupted Scootaloo, giving her a shocked look. “Scoot, you never told me that-“

“Well, you see, I uh-“

“Scoot, you haven’t been endangering yourself with your flying practice, have you?” Rainbow worried. “Because if you have been, then you need to stop. I know you want to be like me, but if it’s gonna put you in-“

“I know! I know I’ll never be like you, Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo choked back a sob. “But does that really mean I can’t even dream? I know it’s not Dad’s fault I can’t fly, but when I met you that first time, it just gave me so much hope. I really wanted to be like you, but I can’t! I’m just destined to be useless forever.”

Scootaloo buried her face in Rainbow’s chest and started to bawl her eyes out. Rainbow could barely hold the tears back herself as she comforted the filly she’d come to think of as a little sister. “Hey, Scoot, come on. Nopony thinks you’re useless, and you should never feel that way about yourself. You have a very special gift that you’re completely overlooking here, and I’m not just talking about your fillyfriends. Just ask them what they really feel makes you special. I’m sure it has to have clicked by now, Scootaloo.”

“You make it sound like something we should already know,” Sweetie Belle complained.

Apple Bloom frowned. “Well, maybe it is. We’ve been searchin’ all this time and still nothin’. Maybe it’s like lookin’ fer somethin’ ya lost, how it’s always in the last place ya look.”

Scootaloo sniffled. “It’s always in the last place you look because you stop searching after that.”

“I don’t think that’s what she meant, Scoot.” Sweetie Belle looked to Apple Bloom. “Like the last place we would think to look, right?”

Scootaloo frowned. “A library?”

Apple Bloom chuckled. “No, silly. Think about it like if ya ever lost yer scooter. Where would be the last place ya’d think ta look?”

“There wouldn’t be a last place I’d look. I’d look everywhere!” Scootaloo protested.

“Just like our cutie marks,” Sweetie Belle saged.

Scootaloo blinked. “Yeah, I guess so. So you’re telling me I’d never find it again?”

Apple Bloom smiled. “No, Ah’m sayin’ that at the end of it all, when ya’ve looked all over Equestria, ya realize somethin’ that seems so obvious, but ya never really thought about it ‘till just then.”

Sweetie Belle’s eyes began to tear up. “Something that’s kept you going through it all.”

Scootaloo’s tears stopped abruptly as the answer dawned on her. “I was riding it all along. But that’s not the only thing. I had you guys with me the whole way. And at the end of it all, we found way more than just a dumb old scooter.”

“We found love,” Sweetie Belle contributed.

“And who we’re meant ta be,” Apple Bloom finished.

Scootaloo’s tears began anew as she began to intone, for perhaps the last time, an age-old vow. “And no matter what happens…”

“We’re gonna be in this together,” Apple Bloom picked up.

Sweetie Belle squeaked. “Because we are…”

“The Cutie Mark Crusaders.”

As a nearly-blinding flash of light began to emanate from each of their flanks, the three fillies met at the center for a tender group hug that inevitably led their lips together. Unaware, and uncaring for that moment in time, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle experienced the most intense rush of love they ever had in their yet young lives.

Applejack squealed in an entirely uncharacteristic show of her entirely characteristic pride, clutching Rainbow tightly and placing a great big kiss on her lips. Carrot Top and Derpy similarly embraced, practically glowing with pride.

“I love you two so much,” Scootaloo murmured, breaking away to fall back onto the bed and slip back out of consciousness, with the blanket sliding into place to conveniently cover her no-longer-blank flanks.

“Scoot, you alright?” Apple Bloom worried.

“She’ll be fine; she should be lapsing in and out of consciousness for a couple days now, and after all she just went through, I can see how she would shut down afterward.”

Derpy stared at the doctor. “Why are you still here?”

The doctor blinked. “I’m a doctor; it’s my prerogative to monitor the condition of my patients.”

Derpy frowned. “That’s creepy. Go away.”

The doctor, unable to come up with a compelling argument, did as he was told.

In the meanwhile, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle had curled up to sleep next to Scootaloo, careful not to disturb her casted wings. The three of them were in for quite a surprise when they woke up.









“Well, it is possible the surge could manifest in different ways,” Twilight supposed, making a note on her chalkboard. “And by all logic, Ponyville should have been the hardest hit, but I didn’t see anything wrong when I got here. And if Canterlot was subject to violent uprising, that might mean that Ponyville was subject to their softer sides, which would lead me to believe that… Oh dear.”

“Is something the matter, Twilight?” Trixie asked innocuously.

“Well, when I left for Canterlot, Applejack and Rainbow Dash had just gotten together,” Twilight extrapolated. “It really was hilarious to see them so flustered and confused. But they meant enough to each other to not rush headlong into a relationship like you might expect them to. So at the time, their softer sides were far more prevalent, of course, which means that what happened in Canterlot could only be a small fraction of the backlash.”

“So this magical outburst might have been why the Ponyvillians kept their hostility towards me in check?” Trixie hypothesized.

Twilight blinked. “I… actually hadn’t thought of that. But good thinking.”

Trixie blinked back. “Then what were you getting at?”

Twilight hesitated. “Well, what’s the softest, sappiest thing you can think of?”

“Romance,” Trixie answered, “but what does that have to do with…” Trixie’s eyes grew fearful. “Oh dear Celestia.”

“There’s no telling how many relationships might have sprung up in the last few days I was gone!” Twilight fretted. “Just think of how many ponies could be hurting after the end of the magic surge cut off some of the weaker bonds!”

“It also bears to note how many waxing relationships may have been saved by the timely surge,” Trixie countered. “If there was really nothing but magic holding two ponies together, then wouldn’t it be best for them to not pursue false avenues?”

“I suppose that’s true, but we can’t assume all the participants were on a level playing field. Could you imagine what it would be like to have a taste of romance with a long-time crush, only to have it swept away the next moment?”

“I certainly can,” Trixie muttered a little too loudly.

Twilight smirked. “Why’s that? It can’t be that the great and powerful Trixie is harboring feelings for somepony?”

“There are many things I harbor that might surprise you,” Trixie spoke without thinking.

Twilight cocked her head. “Like what?”

Trixie blinked, trying to fight back her rising blush. “A-actually, I should probably go…”

“What? But you just-“ Twilight watched in bewilderment as Trixie fled. Some force led Twilight to her balcony to watch Trixie’s escape.

Somewhere down the road, Twilight heard a female voice cry out, “It’s Trixie! She’s returned!”

A male voice answered. “Yeah, and she just came out of Princess Twilight’s library!”

“While she’s away in Canterlot?” A third voice of questionable gender chimed in. “Just think of what she might have stolen!”

“Well, we’ll teach her Ponyville ain’t to be trifled with, even if the Princess is away,” the male voice threatened.

“Oh horseapples!” Trixie’s voice could barely be heard.

Twilight finally spotted Trixie backed into an alleyway with a mob of vengeful ponies bearing down on her. In a flash of magic, Twilight interposed herself between the two parties and rounded upon the mob. “And just what in Tartarus do you ponies think you’re doing, antagonizing an innocent mare?”

“Innocent mare? Princess, this known offender just came boltin’ outta your library like she’d committed some sorta crime!”

“A library in which she was my personal guest, whom I was just sharing a pleasant conversation with.” Twilight narrowed her eyes. “And have you forgotten the last time she came here to ask for forgiveness?”

The speaker winced visibly. “Well, uh, that was a long time ago, and…”

“That was last year,” Twilight corrected. “And right after she sent Ponyville into chaos.”

Trixie recoiled, not sure what to make of this abrupt shift.

“But she’s changed since then. From what I’ve been told, she’s used this past year to try and reform herself through her travels, and I believe her,” Twilight turned her head to smile at Trixie. “I also believe that the word of a princess should carry some weight around here.”

“O-of course!” The mob began to recede. “We’ll just, uh… Real sorry ‘bout that, Princess.”

Twilight laughed. “Just be sure to save that energy for a real threat next time.”

“That wasn’t really necessary,” Trixie insisted. “I could have gotten out of that myself.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “And I probably wouldn’t have seen you around Ponyville again. Can’t be having that. Now come on back. I promise not to pry if you don’t want me to.”

Trixie smiled. “Sorry for the trouble, Princess.”

Twilight chortled. “Don’t you dare start with that; I’m just Twilight to my friends.”

Trixie happily accompanied just Twilight back to the library, proud to have earned the title of friend.









Rainbow collapsed onto the couch of Applejack’s living room with a sigh. “All that and it’s still only lunchtime. Are you sure days always used to be this long?”

“They are when ya don’t nap through half of ‘em,” Applejack said from the kitchen. “Now don’t get too comfy, we’re just here ta pick up some apples fer lunch.”

“Can’t we just go have lunch at Tavi’s? That casserole she makes is awesome,” Rainbow suggested.

“Ah told ya, we can’t just go around invitin’ ourselves in ta other ponies’ houses,” Applejack returned. “We’ll have plenty o’ time fer our lessons later, or did ya forget we had ta pick up those, too?”

Rainbow groaned. “But we’ve already done so much stuff today! Can’t we go take a nap just this once?”

“Well Ah’m sorry if mah active lifestyle ain’t somethin’ ya think ya can keep up with,” Applejack teased, coming out of the kitchen to lob an apple at Rainbow’s head. Rainbow caught the apple in her mouth in more of a show of Applejack’s accuracy than Rainbow’s agility.

“And I’m sorry if six hours of sleep just doesn’t cut it sometimes,” Rainbow shot back through a mouthful of apple.

“What was that? Ya gotta take the apple outta yer mouth first,” Applejack laughed.

Rainbow righted herself on the couch and held the apple in her hoof. “How is it that you make that sound sexy?”

“Maybe because ya get distracted so often by the ones on mah flank,” Applejack suggested, brandishing her cutie mark. “Now come on, Ah ain’t carryin’ yer guitar.”

Shrugging, Rainbow fit the rest of the apple into her mouth and followed Applejack upstairs. “Feels like forever since we’ve had any time for band stuff, huh?”

Applejack turned to see that Rainbow was still chewing on her apple. So instead of answering, Applejack made a scene of pressing her lips against Rainbow’s for a kiss. Rainbow needed no further encouragement to open her mouth in acceptance, delighting as Applejack’s tongue slipped in, wrapped around the apple in her mouth and-

“Hey!” Rainbow protested, but Applejack had already retreated with her prize. “I was eating that!”

Applejack swallowed the last of it. “Well, then ya shouldn’a kept it where Ah could get at it.”

Rainbow chuckled. “What’s with you all of a sudden? You’re more flirty than usual.”

“Well, maybe Ah’ve got somethin’ on mah mind,” Applejack cooed. “Somethin’ we never got ta doin’ yesterday.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened. “I like where this is going. Continue.”

Applejack giggled. “Stop makin’ it so hard ta keep this up. Ah swear, Ah try ta be sexy for ya…”

“You know there are only two ways out now,” Rainbow quirked her brow, “horny and distracted or relaxed and satisfied.”

“You really gotta ask which one Ah’m after?”

Rainbow shrugged. “Just making sure.”

Applejack rolled her eyes. “Why do Ah get the feelin’ we’re gonna be havin’ that nap after all?”

“What can I say, I’m an exhausting ride,” Rainbow jested.

Applejack snorted in amusement. “Fer you, maybe. Now c’mere, you!”







Guess what.






“Alright, ready ta head out?” Applejack called before exiting the bedroom. There just beyond the door she found Rainbow frowning at her. “Somethin’ wrong, sugarcube?”

“Aren’t you gonna bring your drums?” Rainbow asked, indicating Applejack’s unencumbered form. “I thought this was what that was all about.”

Applejack cocked her head. “Well, yeah, but how much can Vinyl really help out with that?”

Rainbow snorted in amusement. “Just because Scratch is all about electronic music doesn’t mean she doesn’t know a thing or two about heavy metal.”

Applejack hummed. “What is that metal thing ya keep talkin’ about? Ah thought we were startin’ a rock band.”

“Well, it’s kinda like rock, but different,” Rainbow explained as she marched Applejack back into the bedroom. “It’s a newer thing, so it’s not really too big yet. It basically just takes the heavier aspects of rock and makes them, well, even heavier. That’s why it’s called heavy metal.”

Applejack cocked a brow. “But metal is already heavier than rocks. Why do ya gotta specify? Ah ain’t ever heard o’ any light metal, but Ah guess we haven’t really gotten too far inta that stuff just yet.”

Rainbow paused. “You know, that’s a pretty good point. Maybe something to think about when the genre starts expanding.”

“Is that what yer tryin’ ta do then? Add a little somethin’ ta what’s already there?” Applejack hypothesized.

Rainbow turned to face Applejack with a smile. “Well, I’m pretty sure nopony’s tried blending it with country yet. Believe me when I say I wouldn’t be doing any of this without you.”

Applejack blushed. “Ya big sap,” she laughed giving Rainbow a kiss after securing the bulky instrument on her back.

“Now we’re ready to go,” Rainbow grinned. “Come on, if we do this quick we might have enough time left to hit up the arcade!”

“Ah fergot about that,” Applejack admitted with a chuckle.

“You shouldn’t,” Rainbow instructed. “The world’s evolving, AJ, and I’m not gonna sit by and watch the farm fall to technology.”

Applejack smiled at the sentiment. “Ah don’t think we gotta worry about that too much. We showed all of Ponyville what good old fashioned hard work can do when we chased off Flim and Flam, right?”

Rainbow chuckled. “Have I ever told you how much I love having my birthday in the middle of cider season?”

“Funny how things work sometimes, huh?”

“Awesome, too.” Rainbow held the front door open for Applejack to trudge through. “You need any help carrying that?”

“Nope,” Applejack smirked, “one o’ the perks of bein’ an earth pony. We’re built ta carry a lot more weight than a pegasus like you.”

“So that’s mind control and super strength. Do you have any other superpowers I should know about?”

Applejack laughed. “Yer never gonna let that one go, are ya?”

“Why would I? Even if it wasn’t airtight, I can always get a laugh out of you at least,” Rainbow returned.

“Since when have you been a laugh expert?” Applejack teased. “Not tryin’a steal Pinkie’s job now, are ya?”

“Well, we were talking about how to get her off our backs yesterday…” Rainbow smirked.

Applejack put a hoof to her forehead. “You’ve got an answer ta everythin’, don’t ya?”

Rainbow cocked her head. “Nah, that one was just a coincidence. I usually just make things up as I go.”

“That would explain a lot.”

Rainbow frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothin’ ya ever gotta worry about, sugarcube,” Applejack chuckled. “Just one o’ those things Ah love about ya.”

Rainbow felt a dopey grin spread across her face. Neither of them had yet to say it outright, nor were they ready to call it that, but just thinking about it always made Rainbow feel funny. She opted not to call Applejack out on it, figuring it was probably just a slip of the tongue. What she couldn’t see, however, was the burning blush on Applejack’s face as she caught her own slip too late.

The rest of their walk was completed in slightly awkward silence as they came to Vinyl’s shack and noticed that all the lights were out. Before Applejack could suggest that she might be over at Octavia’s, Rainbow reached a hoof up to knock on the door.

From within the dark house, a barely intelligible groan came from the white unicorn splayed out on the couch, “Go away.”

Rather than obey the command, Rainbow tried the door to find it locked. Undeterred, she moved to a window that offered no such resistance and slipped inside. “Rainbow, what are you-“

Applejack was cut off as the front door swung open. “Applejack, I’m gonna need you for this.”

Shaking her head in bewilderment, Applejack followed Rainbow inside.

“Dammit, Tavi, I told you I-“ Vinyl blinked as she regarded her visitors. “Oh, uh, hey Dash. What’s up?”

“That’s my question,” Rainbow returned. “What the hell’s wrong with you?”

Vinyl grumbled as she massaged her temples. “Well, since I know I’m not getting rid of you without an answer, it’s about me and Tavi.”

“Somethin’ happen? Ya seemed real happy together before,” Applejack prodded.

“We are, but that just makes this harder,” Vinyl complained.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “What did she do that you’re blowing out of proportions?”

“She gave me an ultimatum,” Vinyl cringed. “She’s really starting to push the issue.”

“Which is?” Rainbow prompted.

“Moving in with her,” Vinyl clarified. “She told me I’ve been avoiding the issue for weeks and she’s had enough. So now it’s her or the house.”

Rainbow frowned. “That sounds like a no-brainer.”

“Out of context, yeah,” Vinyl admitted. “But she didn’t stop there. She thinks I’ve been having a little too much of a field day with all the new couples popping up. I told her it was mostly just a joke, but now she thinks that I think that she’s not good enough for me.”

“And now yer thinkin’ yer not good enough for her,” Applejack finished with a sigh. “Vinyl, ya ain’t gonna get nowhere thinkin’ like that but the bottom of a bottle. She’s invitin’ ya into her home, to be with her every minute of the day. That means dealin’ with ya without any of the breaks. Ain’t that enough ta let ya know how much ya mean to her? If you don’t go back there, she’s gonna be just as miserable as you are, maybe even more. You really wanna do that to her?”

Vinyl sniffed. “I just don’t want to hurt her. She’s the best damn thing that’s ever happened to me, and if my wandering eye is really gonna be a problem…”

“Then you two will just have ta figure that out together,” Applejack suggested. “Let her know that’s all it is, She’s gotta understand ya’ve got a wanderin’ eye, not a wanderin’ heart.”

“Well, just look at you two,” Vinyl shot back. “Rainbow’s had sexual feelings for you for years, and now they’ve evolved into romantic feelings. I never want that to happen. I love Tavi too damn much.”

Rainbow was thankful Applejack couldn’t see her face right now. “Why would that be a problem? Do you have sexual feelings for somepony right now?”

Vinyl nodded hesitantly.

“And who is it?”

“Lyra,” Vinyl admitted with a small blush.

“But you already went through a relationship with her and it didn’t work out,” Rainbow pointed out. “Why do you think it’s gonna be different now that your romantic feelings are already with Tavi?”

“And she never seemed ta argue too much when ya suggested somethin’ that included her 'til just recently,” Applejack continued. “And Lyra’s already got Bon Bon, too. Sounds ta me like you’ve got a real nice opportunity ta get her sold on the idea.”

“You mean like a… foursome?” Vinyl’s face heated up.

“I remember you asking us about one of those, too,” Rainbow smirked.

Applejack nodded. “And Ah was already considerin’ it, but if it can help ya with Octavia, then Ah’ve got no reason ta say no.”

Vinyl’s face grew hotter. “Uh… Okay, so I just…”

“Don’t bring it up right away,” Applejack warned. “Spend time with her alone first. Ya’ve still got a rough patch ta mend, anyway.”

“And how am I supposed to do that?” Vinyl fretted.

“Make a statement. Something bold she can’t misunderstand.” Rainbow shared a glance with Applejack. “Sell this house.”

Vinyl’s eyes widened. “But it’s a mess!”

“That’s why ya’ve gotta clean it up a bit first,” Applejack instructed. “Rainbow and Ah will take care o’ the buyer; you take care o’ the house. We’re gonna get the deal of a lifetime worked out here.”

“I… you guys don’t have to do this,” Vinyl protested weakly. “I can work this out on my own.”

“And risk losing Tavi?” Rainbow chortled. “No way, Scratch; you’re gonna get help and you’re gonna like it.”

With that, Applejack and Rainbow departed, leaving their instruments by the door. “Well, certainly wasn’t expectin’ that. Come on, there should be a copy of the registry at the library.”

Rainbow nodded, following Applejack to their new destination.









Trixie sighed as she crossed the threshold of Golden Oaks Library. “Thank you again for doing all this for me. You really didn’t have to.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “And what else was I supposed to do, leave you out in the streets?”

“But this is twice now you’ve helped me, and I haven’t done anything for you,” Trixie went on.

“I told you, this is what friends do for each other,” Twilight reiterated. “You don’t have to do anything for me. Just try to learn to accept help without smothering me in thanks!”

Trixie frowned. “My apologies. It’s just that, well, it’s been so long since I’ve experienced such kindness. And I still need to make it up to you for-“

“No!” Twilight reproached. “You don’t have to make anything up to me. And you don’t have to thank me every time I do so much as hold the door open for you! I swear, it’s like this is some alien concept to you.”

Trixie hesitated. “Then what do you want from me?”

“I want you to settle down, be happy, and find yourself some middle ground to work with,” Twilight instructed. “If you can do that for me, then that’s all you’ll ever need to do, alright?”

“Okay,” Trixie accepted. “I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable. It’s just that where I grew up, kindness like this was a token occurrence. It was more of an every mare for herself atmosphere. But here in Ponyville there’s just this odd sense of camaraderie I’ve not seen anywhere else. It will take some getting used to.”

Twilight’s face softened. “It sounds like you had it pretty rough. Where did you grow up, exactly?”

“Manehattan,” Trixie answered. “So, maybe you could understand that this all is a little alien to me. I really have no idea how I’m supposed to deal with it.”

Twilight laughed. “Well, I have a bit of first-hoof experience adjusting to life here. Though I don’t know how much it’s changed since I left. And it sounds to me like you might be in need of a little coaching.”

Trixie smiled. “That would be wonderful.”

Twilight smiled back, but before she could say any more, a knock came from the front door. Smile faltering, she went to answer it and found Applejack and Rainbow Dash at the door.

Rainbow blinked. “Twilight? When did you get back?”

“Earlier this morning,” Twilight answered. “Was there something you needed?”

“Yeah, ya wouldn’t happen ta have a copy o’ the town registry somewhere around here, would ya?” Applejack asked.

Twilight cocked her head. “Yes, I do, but why would you need that?”

“We’ve got a bit of a situation on our hooves,” Rainbow explained. “Short version is we need to know if there are maybe any ponies new in town looking for a place to live.”

“Well I don’t think I’m going to need the registry to show you one such pony,” Twilight said, stepping aside to reveal Trixie sitting at the other end of the room.

“Oh, hey Trix,” Rainbow greeted. “You’re still looking for a place?”

“Sort of, yes,” Trixie confirmed. “Twilight’s offered me her home, but I really wouldn’t want to impose. Besides, I would need some place a little more private to store my… merchandise.”

Twilight and Applejack blushed, while Rainbow grinned. “I’m sure Scratch wouldn’t have a problem with that.”

Twilight blinked. “Wait, Vinyl’s selling her house?”

“Yeah, she and Tavi had a bit of a fight about getting Scratch to move in,” Rainbow revealed. “And it sounds like Trix needs a little hideaway. So everything works out great, right?”

“It also sounds like there’s been a lot going on since I left,” Twilight pressed.

“Trust me, you don’t know the half of it,” Rainbow sighed. “But hey, you were just in Canterlot, so maybe you know about any possible banishment notices lately? Specifically one for ponies not currently involved in a relationship?”

Twilight frowned, furrowing her brow. “That’s oddly specific. And a little bit worrying. But no, the Princesses and I had no part in what’s been going on. That’s your fault.”

Rainbow cocked her head. “How is it my fault? I mean, I guess we kind of had a hoof in the Crusaders, but everything else happened by itself.”

Twilight groaned. “So you’re telling me that you two influenced three innocent fillies to pursue a complex relationship?”

“It ain’t like they’re unhappy, Twi,” Applejack chimed in. “Ah really haven’t seen mah sister so happy since she and her friends started crusadin’.”

“Yeah, but I get the feeling that’s not gonna last too much longer,” Rainbow added.

“You mean they’re being driven apart because of what you did?” Twilight demanded.

Rainbow chortled. “No, I mean they finally got their cutie marks. You’ve really gotta stop thinking in worst-case scenarios, egghead.”

Twilight blinked multiple times. “So it’s actually… working out?”

“Just about everythin’ seems ta be,” Applejack chuckled. “Apart from this little mess between Vinyl an’ Octavia, anyway.”

Twilight felt a smile spread across her face. “Then… what else happened while I was gone?”

“Let’s see, Rarity hooked up with Mac, Cloudchaser and Flitter are having hot twin sex, and Fluttershy got hit on by Cheerilee. That about cover it?” Rainbow turned to Applejack.

“There’s also how ya stood up ta the weather committee and got yerself assigned ta work the farm full-time,” Applejack reminded.

“Oh yeah, she wasn’t here for that, was she?” Rainbow chuckled. “She wasn’t even here when I got accepted into the Wonderbolts!”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Oh my gosh, congratulations, Rainbow! You’ve worked so hard for this! Oh, you must be so excited and why don’t you look happy about this?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Rainbow said with the most convincing smile she could muster. “Just something me and AJ have to figure out.”

Twilight frowned as the implications dawned on her. “Oh, yeah, that would be a problem, wouldn’t it?”

Applejack threw a hoof around Rainbow’s shoulders and nuzzled her cheek. “Come on, sugarcube. No need ta mope about it. Ah promise we’re gonna figure somethin’ out.”

Rainbow smiled genuinely. “Right, we’ve still got a house to sell. And a foursome to potentially have!”

“There ya go,” Applejack chuckled. “Now Ah know yer probably buzzin’ with questions over there, Trixie. And probably you, too, Twi. So don’t hold back; we’ve still got a good while before Vinyl finishes tidyin’ up.

“This town is going to take more getting used to than I thought.” Trixie shook her head in bewilderment.

“It certainly is one of the more colorful places I’ve been to,” Twilight agreed. “So, Pinkie and I are the only ones left unpaired, then?”

“Well, you never know with Pinkie, and Fluttershy’s still trying to figure out what to do about Cheerilee, but yeah. Better find yourself a love interest before you fall behind!” Rainbow teased.

“She’s plenty behind already, sugarcube,” Applejack laughed. “Unless ya forgot what we’ve been up to lately.”

Rainbow’s wings flared. “Uh, no, of course not.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Twilight rolled her eyes humoredly.

Rainbow grinned. “Well, maybe you’d be surprised to hear about what Big Mac’s been up to-“

“She don’t need ta hear that!” Applejack interrupted. “And we ain’t gonna break Rarity’s trust just because I got ya a little flustered.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Fine, but I still want to see her face when she finds out.”

“What are you two going on about?” Twilight asked, utterly confused.

“Nothing you need to worry about,” Rainbow and Applejack answered in unison.

“That was adorable,” Trixie teased.

Rainbow frowned. “You shut up!”

Trixie laughed in blatant defiance of Rainbow’s demands.

“Some things never change,” Applejack chuckled.









Octavia sat alone on her couch after cleaning up lunch. What was she supposed to do now? Was the next move even hers to make? Octavia cringed as she considered the possibility that there would be no next move.

Octavia sighed, slumping to the side and hugging a pillow to her face. Even if her feelings weren’t entirely mutual, could she bear to end it so soon after it had begun? She knew in her heart that she would still love Vinyl regardless of her answer. But did Vinyl still love her?

“Way to go, Octavia,” she groaned, rolling over to bury her face in the couch. “Couldn’t just make this easy on yourself, could you?”

It was true that it hurt whenever she caught Vinyl’s gaze on another mare, or when she suggested group intercourse. But how much of that was on Octavia herself? Since that first day they had been approached by Applejack and Rainbow Dash, there had been no sex in their relationship. Was that all Vinyl really cared about? Vinyl’s previous encounters with Lyra had been fueled entirely by lust, and they were quick to die out. Was she destined for the same fate?

Octavia pounded her head against the pillow in an attempt to beat the stupidity out of herself.  All she succeeded in doing was making herself red in the face. Sighing and discarding the defective pillow, she rolled onto her back to stare up at the ceiling. It was so much further away than in Vinyl’s shack. There she might be able to touch it if she stretched; here her hoof only met open air. That hoof then came down to rub her sore muzzle.

“Funny, I always thought the term ‘beating yourself up’ was a metaphor,” Octavia mumbled with little true humor in her voice. “No, that’s something Vinyl would say.” Octavia frowned, wondering why she felt anger building up inside her. The answer came to her shortly thereafter. Picking up the discarded pillow, Octavia held it in front of her with trembling hooves as she imagined Vinyl’s face upon it. “That’s right, this isn’t about me. This is all your fault!”

But now Octavia was at an impasse. Half of her wanted to punch the pillow across the room, and the other half wanted to hug it to her chest and never let go. Settling on throwing it away violently, Octavia groaned, “I don’t even know what to do with you anymore.” Octavia returned her gaze to the ceiling. “But lying here all day is just gonna make me feel worse.” She sat upright, steeling herself for her next move. Warring emotions or not, unstable footing or solid ground, Octavia was going to march up to Vinyl’s house and… do something!

Throwing her door open and only barely remembering to lock it behind her, Octavia tore through Ponyville to Vinyl’s shack. In her wake, many ponies were left staring at the normally restrained cellist, though Octavia was far from caring at that point.

Octavia threw herself at Vinyl’s door to find it offered less resistance than she expected, causing her to fall in a heap on the welcome mat. Startled by the noise, Vinyl jumped to her hooves, blinking at the sight that greeted her. “Tavi? What…”

Mindful of her prone position, Octavia heaved herself up onto her hooves, dusting herself off with her tail. But after setting her stance, she found herself met with the same conflicting desires as she had when facing the pillow, only with one more thrown into the mix that made things infinitely more complicated. Unable to commit to one of her many options, she grabbed the doorknob with her tail and slammed it closed. “What the hell am I going to do with you, Vinyl?”

In a surprising move, Vinyl smiled, picking something up from the floor in her magic and holding it before her. “Maybe this would help you decide?”

Frowning, Octavia snatched the offending object that had begun poking her in the chest, and was about to throw it away before she realized just what it was. Tears brimmed in Octavia’s eyes as she read the scribbled words, “For Sale.” Looking up at Vinyl with an expression of disbelief, Octavia found she could not form words. Vinyl just smiled and nodded at Octavia’s unspoken question.

Before Vinyl understood what was going on, she was tackled to the floor and wrapped in a crushing hug. “T-tavi?” Vinyl barely managed to squeak out against the tremendous pressure around her neck.

Hearing Vinyl’s strangled response, Octavia loosened her grip. “I’m sorry I snapped at you, Vinyl. I really didn’t mean it; I know how difficult this is for you. I know you’re never far, but I’ve just been feeling like you’ve been drifting away since our first night together, and I don’t ever want to lose you, so I just thought-“

“No, you were right, Tavi. It’s about time I started committing to you. I’ve had plenty of time by myself these past few years, and I don’t really know why I’ve been hanging on to that.” Vinyl took Octavia’s hoof in her own. “I hope you haven’t shut your door for me yet.”

Octavia’s eyes began to water as she wrapped Vinyl in another, albeit gentler, hug. “I can promise you anything you want, Vinyl. Just name it and it’s yours.”

Somewhere in the back of her head, a nagging little piece of tactlessness told her to ask about what had been on her mind. Paying it no mind, Vinyl spoke instead from her heart. “There’s only one thing I can think of that I really want right now. And that involves you, me, and giving this old place a hell of a send-off.”

A blush graced Octavia’s cheeks. “I can’t say that didn’t come to mind, either. That night was the greatest I can remember.”

Vinyl smirked. “Well, it’s a good thing we’ve got a lot of catching up to do. ‘Cause we’re not stopping for dinner.”






Make-up sex go!






“Alright, so we have a budding incest relationship between twins spawned by a bad experience from a long-time crush, an under-aged polygamous relationship influenced directly by you two, awkward romantic advances from a surprising source, and however you want to classify what’s going on between Rarity and Big Macintosh,” Twilight summed up after a lengthy discussion about what all had transpired in her absence, sans a few details. “And through all of them, the only male involved is the aforementioned Mac. So, adding these relationships to the ones I already know, that leaves us with eight homosexual pairings against just four heterosexual ones.”

“Sounds about right,” Rainbow added.

Twilight frowned. “That doesn’t strike any of you as odd?”

“Well, we already know that the mares outnumber the stallions in this town by a similar margin,” Trixie pointed out. “And even then you can’t expect every stallion to hold an interest in mares. So assuming an even split, that leaves the heterosexual stallions outnumbered four to one. Barring polygamy, that leaves three quarters of Ponyville’s mares to either pair up or live alone. Again, assuming an even split of orientations, that leaves a quarter of the mares unpaired. That leaves us with homosexual relationships outnumbering heterosexual ones three to one. Take the homosexual stallions out of the picture and you’re left with a two to one split. So I would venture to say that these numbers are an accurate representation of romance in Ponyville, despite the small sample size.”

Rainbow Dash and Applejack blinked, while Twilight’s brow furrowed. “But not every stallion and homosexual mare is in a relationship. Say you have a hundred mares and fifty stallions, but set ten of each, five heterosexual and five homosexual, aside to be left unpaired. That leaves us with a forty five to twenty disparity, rather than a-“

“Now hold on just a minute, now you’re straying away from percentages!” Trixie interrupted. “While they’re not foolproof, they’re more reliable than fixed integers.”

“But if we keep using percentages, the numbers can’t remain clean in a small sample size,” Twilight protested. “If we took five percent of each category out, we’d be dealing with fractions, and last I checked you have to be a whole pony in order to stay alive.”

“That would merely mean we would have to increase our populations,” Trixie answered easily.

Twilight groaned. “That would make our data unrealistic! We’re not dealing with Canterlot or Manehatten here. I don’t think you could even fit fifteen thousand ponies into Ponyville, and that’s the lowest we could go to eliminate all the fractional ponies.”

“Well, what is the population of Ponyville, then?” Trixie demanded. “It certainly can’t still be that small.”

“At last count, it was under five thousand,” Twilight informed.

“I meant a number, not a range!” Trixie barked.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Fine, it was four thousand eight hundred thirty six.”

“Aha, so we would be dealing with fractions all the same!” Trixie declared triumphantly.

“That’s the reason we’re working with sample sizes!” Twilight retorted. “You can take a hundred out of four thousand eight hundred thirty six, but you can’t take fifteen thousand out of it!”

“Well, what are we even trying to achieve, then, accuracy or neatness? If whole numbers really make that much of a difference to you, we could always round-“

“Rounding wouldn’t solve anything!” Twilight cut Trixie off.  “Well, it would, but more problems would arise!”

Applejack leaned in close to Rainbow. “You have any idea what they’re goin’ on about?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I don’t know, I usually slept through math. When you’re an amazing athlete like me you don’t need straight A’s to get through school.”

“Ah thought Ah had that attitude beaten outta ya,” Applejack teased.

Rainbow scoffed. “As if! I just figured you didn’t need to be reminded of how awesome I was any more after you totally fell head over hooves for me.”

Applejack smirked. “Actually, if’n Ah’m rememberin’ it right, you were the one who gave me that first kiss.”

“That was an accident, it doesn’t count!” Rainbow overruled. “You were the one who came crawling back to lay one on me!”

“Only ‘cause you started it!” Applejack shot back.

“Only thing I started was the sex, AJ,” Rainbow chirped.

Applejack frowned. “Now hold on a dang minute; that was a joint decision!”

“Yeah, but I’m the one who brought it up in the first place.”

“Don’t mean Ah wasn’t thinkin’ about it!”

Rainbow’s eyes narrowed. “Oh really now? How long did you want me before we got down to it?”

“Not as long as you, Ah reckon,” Applejack chuckled.

“Oh come on, that was like one time! It was right after the Running of the Leaves, you just tackled me out of the sky, and you looked so damn sexy with all that sweat and dust on you…”

“So you like it when Ah take the lead? Here I was thinkin’ Ah was gonna have ta fight ya fer toppin’ rights.”

Rainbow blushed through a scowl. “And what makes you think you’ve won?”

Applejack grinned. “The way Ah saw you squirm when Ah-“

Applejack never got to finish that thought as Rainbow couldn’t hold back her burning desire any longer and rammed her face up against Applejack’s to shut her up with a kiss. After the initial shock wore off, Applejack smiled around Rainbow’s insistent tongue before she allowed it entry into her mouth.

Twilight and Trixie, having settled their dispute mere moments before, looked on with fierce blushes as a similar argument about nothing in particular ended in the throes of passion. Despite her best efforts, Twilight could not dispel the image in her mind that swapped their places. Trixie, meanwhile, was praying to Celestia that nothing felt the need to collide with her belly for the next few minutes.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash, however, showed no signs of stopping. To the contrary, they seemed to be getting more heated with each passing second. If allowed to continue much further, it wouldn’t be too long before-

“Am I missing something here?”

All four mares, including the two otherwise occupied, jolted upright and fixed their gaze on the young, scaly intruder.

“Oh, uh, hey Spike. What’s up?” Rainbow chuckled nervously.

“Eh, not much, just watching you make out with Applejack there,” Spike answered casually. “Great show, by the way. Ten outta ten, would watch again.”

Twilight frowned. “Spike, what have I told you about suitable viewing material for a dragon your age?”

“Well, you leave me alone for almost a week…”

“Spike, go to your room,” Twilight instructed exasperatedly.

Spike rolled his eyes and departed, but not before pausing at the base of the stairs. “Remember what I told you about curbing your desires.”

Twilight’s cheeks grew hot. “Dammit, Spike, I meant now!”

Snickering, Spike did as he was told.

Rainbow let out a guffaw once she heard the door shut. “Since when did Spike become a player?”

“I can only imagine,” Twilight muttered, making a mental note to throttle Rarity the next time she saw her.

“Can we please go see that house now?” Trixie begged, having backed herself into a corner in an attempt to hide the new color of her face.

Rainbow’s snickering grew into a fit of giggles that Applejack could not help but join in. Smacking her face with a hoof, Twilight extricated Trixie from her corner and dragged Rainbow along by the ear with her magic.

“Ow, okay, sorry, geez,” Rainbow grumbled after breaking free of Twilight’s grip. Applejack chuckled at Rainbow’s expense before apologizing with a peck on the cheek.









A knock at the front door jolted Vinyl awake. She cursed her trained ear and envied Octavia, who was still asleep. But after a failed attempt to snuggle closer to a now empty space, Octavia was roused as well thanks to another, more insistent knock.

Octavia yawned and rubbed at an eye. “Vinyl, what-“

“I think we spent all the time I was supposed to be cleaning the house having sex,” Vinyl stated bluntly.

Octavia blinked as a blush came over her face before she realized the significance of Vinyl’s words. “Oh, you mean you’ve already found a buyer?”

“I didn’t do anything,” Vinyl grumbled, sliding off the edge of the bed. “Applejack and Rainbow Dash came over and decided everything for me.”

“So you’re only moving in with me because they forced you to?” Octavia asked, hurt.

Vinyl paused. “What? No, I’m moving in with you because I want to. I just didn’t plan on selling my house within the hour!” Outside, their impatient guest started to pound the door. Vinyl stuck her head out into the hallway with a scowl. “Shut up, I’m coming!” Returning to her earlier position, Vinyl sighed. “You think you can help me out here? Your place is like, impossibly clean, and I don’t know what they’re expecting.”

Octavia smiled. “I think I can handle whatever messes I can find around here.”

“Great! I’ll stall them.” Vinyl trotted confidently to the door and opened it to reveal more ponies than she was expecting. What was more, she certainly didn’t expect one of them to be… “Trixie? What the hell are you doing in Ponyville?” Vinyl asked in a not entirely unfriendly tone.

Trixie frowned. “Looking for residence, of course. Why else would I have been brought along?”

Glancing behind her to check on Octavia’s progress, Vinyl saw her opportunity to stall for time. “Last time I saw you, you were trying to run Twilight here out of town. And now she comes back from Canterlot with you by her side?”

“Actually, I came here of my own volition,” Trixie explained. “Twilight was merely kind enough to offer me her home in the interim.”

Vinyl smirked. “Wait, so I don’t even know you two are dating and now you’re already shacking up together?”

Rainbow snickered. “She does have a point, you know.”

Twilight blushed. “What? No she doesn’t! Trixie and I are most certainly not dating. I didn’t even know she was in Ponyville until I got back from Canterlot!”

“Yes, and it was Fluttershy who suggested I room with Twilight until I could find a place of my own,” Trixie frowned. “And I heard you were falling on rough times with your marefriend, so I assumed you would be more accepting of my charity.”

Vinyl scoffed. “Charity? Filly please, have you even seen my house?”

“Probably not, but I have. And from what I’ve seen, your place is gonna need a lot more than a little TLC to look appealing,” Rainbow teased.

Applejack frowned. “Rainbow, we’re supposed ta be helpin’ Vinyl sell her house, not sabotage her!”

Rainbow shrugged. “You know what they say about false advertisement.”

Vinyl looked behind her in time to catch Octavia give the all-clear signal. That was fast, Vinyl mused. “Same thing they say about downplaying a masterpiece, right?” Vinyl stepped aside to let her guests take in the state of her abode.

Octavia certainly came through in the clutch, as Vinyl had not seen her house so pristine in years. Applejack and Rainbow Dash, having been there only an hour prior, gawped at the change. Trixie, meanwhile, beamed. Without the usual clutter spread around, the home seemed more cozy than cramped. While it was still rather small, Trixie did not see herself needing too much space for her uses. It was definitely a place she could be happy to call her own.

Leaving the visitors to explore the house, Vinyl ducked out to where Octavia was waiting. “How did you do that so fast?” Vinyl whispered. “Where did you even put it all?”

Octavia smiled and gestured to the closet. Within was everything Vinyl needed to take with her, all tucked neatly away for the move out. “You did most of the work for me. All I had to do was a little bit of sorting. Well, and cleaning up a few stains.”

Vinyl blushed as she realized what Octavia was implying. “Oh, right. That, uh… that wasn’t too bad, was it?”

“Not at all,” Octavia chuckled. “Especially if my reward is to get you flustered for once.”

Vinyl giggled and placed a kiss on Octavia’s forehead. “If I knew moving in was gonna be so easy, I would have done it years ago.”

“We’ve only been together for two months, Vinyl,” Octavia reminded.

“I know,” Vinyl laughed, earning a playful smack from her marefriend.

Octavia sighed and nuzzled into Vinyl’s chest. “Maybe things are finally going to calm down around here.”

“Might be nice,” Vinyl admitted. “But we’ve still got that one last performance before the CMAs, remember?”

Octavia smiled. “As if I could forget. After that, we have the rest of the month to enjoy ourselves.”

“Can’t forget Dash’s guitar lessons, though,” Vinyl pointed out. “And from the looks of it, AJ wants in on some of the action.”

“I’m sure we can deal with teaching a couple of stubborn, clueless mares their instruments before the end of the month,” Octavia chuckled. “Surely can’t be as hard as anything else we’ve been through.”

“True,” Vinyl smirked. “But can you deal with me being around twenty-four hours a day?”

Octavia grinned. “Well, at least I won’t need to worry about going to sleep horny.”

Vinyl’s smirk reached the other side of her mouth. “You did bring everything, right?”

“What do you take me for, an innocent school filly?” Octavia teased.

“I don’t know, I hear it’s about time for some fillies to test their boundaries,” Vinyl chortled.

“Normally I would ask how you know that,” Octavia chortled. “But I’m not entirely sure I want to know this time.”

Vinyl shrugged. “It’s summer, always time for some fillies to experiment. Besides, the crusaders looked like they were just about ready.”

Octavia rolled her eyes. “What was that mantra you told me once about young fillies?”

Vinyl frowned. “If the flank ain’t blank, it’s okay to spank?”

“And do the crusaders have their cutie marks yet?” Octavia asked.

“Hey, you never know,” Vinyl supposed. “I mean, it’s gotta happen eventually. What are they, like twelve?”

Octavia shook her head in bemusement. “Well, let’s hope for their sakes that they’re still searching.”









Scootaloo woke slowly, staring at the ceiling for a few minutes before she realized she was awake. Shaking off her drowsiness, she righted herself to look around. One of the first things she noticed was her two fillyfriends on each side of her, fast asleep. Smiling at the sentiment, she felt her wings begin to stir. Attempting to stretch them out, she found she could not.

“So tired I can’t move my wings? That’s a new one,” Scootaloo mumbled, sparing a glance to her sides and found that they were already extended. What was more, they were held in that position by a thick wrapping of bandages. After a brief moment’s panic, she remembered what had happened and sank back into her pillow with a sigh.

Sweetie Belle began to stir, nuzzling into Scootaloo’s shoulder in an attempt to lull herself back to sleep, but to no avail. Opening her eyes with a groan, she locked eyes with the target of her snuggles. She smiled and gave her fillyfriend a peck on the cheek. “Where’s Apple Bloom?”

Scootaloo gestured to the other side of her, where Apple Bloom was waking as well. Apple Bloom let out a tremendous yawn before jumping to her hooves. “Alright, Ah’m ready! What’re we gonna do next y’all?”

Apple Bloom frowned at the looks her friends were giving her. “Oh, right, Scoot’s still hurt, isn’t she?”

“Apple Bloom, that doesn’t matter right now,” Scootaloo gasped. “Look at your flank!”

Apple Bloom cocked her head. “Mah flank? Ah thought we weren’t gonna-“

Whatever Apple Bloom was going to say died in her throat. As soon as she registered what she saw, she tore the covers right off the hospital bed in an incredible show of adrenaline-fueled strength. There, she saw similar marks on the flanks of each of her two fillyfriends. “Oh mah gosh, guys, we’ve got our cutie marks!”

Sweetie Belle bounded over Scootaloo to tackle Apple Bloom to the bed and pepper her with kisses. Chuckling, but also feeling a little left out, Scootaloo nosed her way into the pile-up. Moments later, she found herself assaulted from both sides in an intense display of affection with just a hint of desire.

Unable to take any more, Apple Bloom retreated from the battle, panting heavily. “They’re perfect, y’all. Ah couldn’a asked fer anythin’ more.”

“Are they all like yours?” Sweetie Belle asked hopefully, because the image on Apple Bloom’s flank had no shortage of sentiment. It showed the emblem of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, with a paintbrush in the pony’s outstretched hoof.

Apple Bloom nodded, “You’ve got a microphone, Sweetie, and Scoot’s got a scooter, o’ course.”

Scootaloo cocked her head. “So what, is the scooter beneath or something, or am I holding it in my hoof?”

“Yer ridin’ it, silly,” Apple Bloom chuckled. “Nah, Ah guess yer just the oddball who don’t got nothin’ in her hoof.”

“Well, she has the handlebar. I think that should count,” Sweetie Belle countered.

“The important thing is we all got them together,” Scootaloo smiled.

“Wow, Scoot. Sappy much?” Apple Bloom teased.

Scootaloo giggled. “You shut up, Apple Bloom.”

“Not unless ya make me!” Apple Bloom laughed.

Scootaloo shared a glance with Sweetie Belle before turning back to Apple Bloom with a wicked grin. “Challenge accepted.”

“Wait, y’all, Ah didn’t mean that-“

“Hold her down, Scoot!” Sweetie Belle instructed.

“You guys, quit it!” Apple Bloom managed between giggles.

Scootaloo smirked. “Not until you admit defeat!”

“This ain’t even fair!” Apple Bloom cackled. “If ya want me ta be quiet, why do ya gotta tickle me?”

“Because tickling solves everything!” Scootaloo proclaimed. “And also Sweetie Belle wanted a turn, since I can’t really use my wings.”

“Resistance is futile, Apple Bloom! You will be assimilated!” Sweetie Belle warned dramatically.

“Ah don’t even know what that means,” Apple Bloom replied.

“Neither do I, I just thought it sounded cool,” Sweetie Belle returned, not dropping her dramatic voice.

“If Sweetie Belle doesn’t know what it means, it must be one complicated word,” Scootaloo chortled.

“So this ain’t gonna happen again, is it? You learned yer lesson, Scoot?” Apple Bloom inquired.

Scootaloo blushed. “Uh, yeah, I think so. Sorry for putting you girls through this so suddenly. I guess I should do a better job of communicating.”

“It’s okay, Scoots,” Sweetie Belle smiled. “And once we get your wings healed, you can go back to the basics, and stay there.”

“Imagine what kinda neat tricks ya could do while yer glidin’,” Apple Bloom added. “Ah’m thinkin’ if ya just started flyin’, that’d take all the fun outta it.”

“Yeah, I guess it wouldn’t be criminal to add just a little bit of hang time,” Scootaloo supposed.

“Not that we’re saying you should set rules for yourself,” Sweetie Belle amended. “Just, you know, try to stay safe, alright?”

Scootaloo smiled. “Promise. And I really am sorry about this. I was just being stupid, trying to prove to you guys, and myself, what I already knew wasn’t true. I should’ve been happy with the small victories, but with the way Rainbow Dash is, I kinda felt like I owed it to her to keep going. I know it sounds stupid, but between crusading and school, she was my life for three years.”

Apple Bloom surprised Scootaloo with a tender kiss on the cheek. “Ya don’t ever have ta apologize fer bein’ yerself, Scoot. We just don’t wanna see ya hurt like this again. Ya gotta remember that yer not alone fer any o’ this. Even if we don’t got wings like Rainbow Dash, that don’t mean we can’t help ya.”

“And I know that now,” Scootaloo assured. “You guys have always been there for me, even when I thought I didn’t want you to be. But that’s just me being stubborn. Next time I try to go off and do something on my own, do whatever you can to stop me. Even if that involves tying me up or knocking me out. I’ll thank you for it later.”

“Especially if it saves you from having your wings bound for a few weeks, right?” Sweetie Belle joked guiltily.

“It’s a learnin’ experience fer all of us,” Apple Bloom said, drawing them both in for a hug. “Can’t say this is how Ah dreamed of gettin’ mah cutie mark, but you know what this means fer us, right?”

Scootaloo thought for a moment before blushing heavily. “That we have your sister’s permission to have sex now?”

Apple Bloom recoiled. “What? No, that’s not… Ah didn’t mean…”

“I’m with Apple Bloom; I’m not in too much of a hurry for that,” Sweetie Belle said, fighting a blush of her own. “That’s a really big step, and we’re still really young.”

“Yeah, Ah don’t think mah body’s quite ready fer that yet, Scoot,” Apple Bloom apologized.

“I didn’t mean right now,” Scootaloo clarified. “Just, you know, whenever we’re ready now. It’s just on us and not on our cutie marks anymore.”

“And as soon as I feel up to it, you girls will be the first to know,” Sweetie Belle promised. “Well, as long as Rarity doesn’t catch me first.”

“And Applejack’s probably already thinkin’ about that,” Apple Bloom added.

“And we can probably count on Rainbow Dash to stay cool about it,” Scootaloo nodded. “She’ll probably keep Applejack off our hooves, too. And Mac’s pretty strong, so he should be able to handle Rarity. So we can take it as slow as we want.”

Sweetie Belle giggled at Scootaloo’s tone. “I think you need to work on your sexy voice, Scoot.”

“Ah didn’t think it was too bad,” Apple Bloom defended. “But yeah, it could use some work.”

“Whose side are you on here?” Scootaloo demanded of Apple Bloom.

Apple Bloom shrugged.









Finished with her tour of the abode, Trixie returned to the living room where Vinyl awaited. Octavia had made herself scarce on request from Vinyl. “So, how much are you asking for this place?”

Vinyl blinked. “How much do you have?”

“Well, nothing on me right now, but I have about twenty thousand,” Trixie revealed after a brief hesitation.

Vinyl frowned, thinking for a moment before demanding, “Alright, give me three and we’ve got a deal.”

Trixie blinked. “Three thousand?”

Vinyl nodded. “Yeah, it’s the fifteen percent rule, right?”

Trixie eyed Vinyl strangely. “That’s for tips.”

Vinyl cocked her head. “Tips of what?”

Trixie face-hoofed, “Never mind. Are you sure you don’t want anything more? That seems a little… low.”

“Nah, I’m not really hurting for money,” Vinyl shrugged. “Sounds like you could use a bit more, though.”

“W-well, thank you, in that case,” Trixie stammered. “I… can’t say I expected this sort of kindness.”

Vinyl shrugged again. “It’s really not a big deal. I’ve wanted to get rid of this place for a whole three hours. I figure that’s a thousand bits per hour, so that’s one hell of a salary.”

“I suppose so,” Trixie returned slowly. “I trust you wouldn’t mind if we wait until tomorrow to finalize. I still need to organize my things, and I can’t say I expected anything quite like this.”

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Vinyl nodded. “Gotta get my stuff carted over, too.” Vinyl turned to Rainbow Dash. “And maybe get around to your lessons finally.”

“Well, we’ve only got about two hours before dinner time,” Rainbow pondered. “And if we helped you move your stuff, we’d barely have enough time to make it back to the farm.”

“If only there were somepony who could dash on over and let Granny know we’ll be eatin’ out tonight,” Applejack hinted. “Then we could take as much time as we like, have a nice dinner and get right down ta what we came here for in the first place.”

Rainbow’s brow furrowed. “That would be nice.” She double-checked the clock. “You mean right now, or…?”

“Ah don’t know, leavin’ me alone with two other fillies? Ya really think Ah could control mahself?” Applejack joked, unable to maintain a straight face.

“Good point,” Rainbow smirked. “You’re coming with me.”

Before Applejack could react, Rainbow darted between the farmer’s legs and stood tall, causing Applejack to reflexively wrap her hooves around Rainbow’s neck. No sooner than she felt Applejack secure herself, Rainbow sprinted through the thankfully open door and took flight for Sweet Apple Acres.

“Warn me next time ya do that,” Applejack breathed.

“No promises, AJ,” Rainbow chortled. “Do you really blame me for wanting a little fresh air after all of that?”

“Don’t suppose I can,” Applejack admitted.

“I get the feeling everything’s finally gonna start calming down now,” Rainbow sighed. “Everything’s resolved – well, almost everything – so unless there’s some big surprise waiting for us tomorrow, I think we can finally get back to where this all started.”

“Ah’d really like that,” Applejack agreed, nuzzling into Rainbow’s mane to plant a kiss on her neck.

Rainbow lurched in response, giggling. “Cut that out.”

“What if I don’t wanna?” Applejack teased.

“Then I hope you don’t mind living out your lifelong dream of becoming a pancake,” Rainbow returned.

“Ya sure that’s not your lifelong dream?” Applejack snickered.

Rainbow shrugged. “Well, I do really like pancakes. But I think I like you as an apple more. I can use you to fight off doctors!”

“So long as ya remember ta take me every day,” Applejack laughed.

Rainbow grinned. “If that’s a challenge, you are so on.”

“We do still have that day ta make up for,” Applejack reminded.

“We better get that done before the end of the day, then. Those doctors are just waiting for that moment when the clock strikes midnight. And before you know it, we end up tied to the wall of a sex dungeon where Trixie molests us daily as punishment for our negligence.”

“Just as long as ya let Twilight join in, sugarcube,” Applejack calmly replied. “Ah saw those looks she was givin’ her.”

“You think she knows about Trixie’s dick yet?” Rainbow wondered.

“Ah’m sure she’d be all abuzz if that was the case,” Applejack chuckled. “She doesn’t even know about Rarity yet.”

“Oh mare is she gonna have a field day,” Rainbow sniggered before touching down to the porch of Applejack’s farmhouse. “Let’s hope Granny’s awake, huh?”

Rather than remark on the fact that Rainbow had called Granny Smith that for the first time, Applejack merely nodded while allowing herself a smile. She never expected Rainbow to adapt to a family life so quickly. It gave her hope for when that day came for them to start their own, and a warm, fluttery feeling in her belly.

“You coming, AJ?” Rainbow asked, holding the door open.

Applejack was quick to respond by walking up next to Rainbow and nuzzling her shoulder. Rainbow certainly wasn’t complaining about the show of affection, giving Applejack a peck on the cheek while extending a wing to pull her closer.

Big Macintosh walked out from the kitchen in time to behold the scene, on which he refrained from commenting. “You two are back early.”

“Yeah, we just stopped by ta tell Granny we’d be havin’ dinner out,” Applejack explained. “She awake?”

Mac shook his head. “Nope, she’s still havin’ her nap. Ah’ll tell her, though, so y’all can run along.”

“Thanks, Mac,” Rainbow saluted.

Big Mac chuckled. “Don’t mention it. Rare’s got me in a real good mood today.”

“I wonder how,” Rainbow snickered. “Oh, and is she in, by the way?”

“She’s upstairs, why?” Big Mac returned.

“Twilight came back from Canterlot, and we filled her in on most of what’s going on,” Rainbow revealed. “Left out a few details, of course, and I doubt Twilight’s gonna be satisfied once she settles back in after all this mess. So, just a heads up to look out for her, and maybe start getting that whole explanation thing worked out.”

“Ah’m sure she’ll be delighted ta hear that,” Mac jested. “Just when ya think yer in the clear…”

“Even if we ain’t quite out of the woods yet, Ah don’t think it should be gettin’ in the way too much anymore,” Applejack assured. “Well, fer me and Rainbow, anyways.”

“And that’s all that matters!” Rainbow declared. “Because damn if we’re not way behind schedule already.”

“Ah’m sure it’ll all work out in the end, sugarcube,” Applejack chuckled. “Just you wait, Twilight’s gonna come up with some time spell ta get all caught up in one day, and it’s gonna throw everythin’ outta whack and we’ll have a whole extra week ta work with.”

“I don’t know, with her track record, time spells might as well be a doomsday scenario,” Rainbow joked. “But I don’t think standing around here is doing anything to help.”

Applejack blinked. “Right, we gotta help Vinyl move her stuff.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “When did I suddenly become the responsible one?”

“We must be rubbin’ off on each other,” Applejack chortled, leading Rainbow outside.

Rainbow’s eyes brightened. “I hope so, ‘cause that would be hot.”

Applejack shook her head. “Alright, let’s leave the fantasizin’ till after we finish crammin’ everythin’ in the last- Would you stop snickerin’?”

Rainbow fought to contain her mirth. “Sorry, sorry.” Taking a deep breath of the afternoon air, Rainbow could not contain a dopey grin as she looked to the pony beside her. “Ready to go?”

Returning the same silly smile, Applejack nodded before clambering onto Rainbow’s back and burying her face in Rainbow’s mane to give her neck another kiss. Needing no further encouragement, Rainbow’s wings stood at attention, and she set course back to what would soon be Trixie’s shack.









Big Macintosh returned to his room where he fell onto his bed beside his marefriend.

Nuzzling him in welcome, Rarity asked, “Who was it, dear?”

“Just AJ and Rainbow comin’ ta say they’d be skippin’ out on dinner tonight,” Mac replied with a sigh. “And also to watch out fer Twilight, since she’s back in Ponyville an’ burstin’ with questions.”

Rarity sagged onto Mac’s broad chest. “To be honest, I was hoping I’d have a bit more time. I’m sure I can take any questions she’ll have, but I’m afraid she’ll lose it when she hears that magic played a big part in my upbringing.”

“Kinda like when Trixie came back ta town and Ah had ta make mahself up like AJ,” Mac chuckled. “Except the other way, Ah guess.”

Rarity winced. “Oh, right. I do hope she’s holding up well.”

Mac turned a confused eye to Rarity. “Who?”

“Trixie, of course,” Rarity cocked her head. “She came by a few days ago to start up her new business selling wares of the… erotic nature.”

Rather than brighten, Mac only grew more confused. “Wait, what?”

Rarity lilted. “I know it sounds improbable, but believe me when I say she was most sincere, both in her apologies and her sales pitch. I assured her that she had made her amends long ago, but I certainly could not turn down her idea for such a delightfully appropriate gift for Applejack and Rainbow Dash. A sign of goodwill I’m sure at least one of them saw for what it was.”

“Okay, slow down, Ah have no idea what we’re talkin’ about here,” Mac interrupted. “You say Trixie’s back in Ponyville ta sell that kinda stuff completely outta nowhere?”

“Oh, no, I assure you that she had her reasons,” Rarity explained. “And it certainly wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision on her part. Ever since that whole incident with the Alicorn Amulet, Trixie had been working to reform herself while she traveled around Equestria. Not to impose her talents onto innocent citizens this time, but to see what she’d been missing before. And whenever she came to a town where she had built a disdainful reputation, she took the extra effort to make amends.

“And apparently, while she was traveling, she also made note of what she might be able to bring to one of these villages. But the only thing consistently pointed to was something that only Ponyville seemed to lack; a sex shop.” Rarity grinned deviously. “Previously, in order to find such wares, a citizen of Ponyville would have to brave the night scene of Canterlot. Not exactly the most convenient, or stealthy, way to go about such business. And this is where Trixie saw her opportunity. Ironic that it would bring her back to where it all started, isn’t it?”

Mac frowned. “That still doesn’t really explain how she got into it in the first place. Ah’m not a unicorn, but I’m pretty sure there ain’t any common ground between the two.”

“Then you would be rightfully surprised,” Rarity giggled. “I won’t quite get into the specifics, but let’s just say that it’s all in the presentation. And it certainly didn’t hurt that she had such a colorful history to draw from, either.”

“What do ya mean by that?” Mac inquired.

“Well, she certainly has all you’d ever need to test and develop all sorts of products without any need for outside assistance,” Rarity hinted. “For she lacks any limitations of a single sex.”

Mac blinked. “Ya mean she’s got both?”

“A rare specimen to be sure,” Rarity nodded. “Perhaps even more so than me, hence my concern for her well-being if Twilight has indeed returned.”

Mac’s face grew thoughtful. “Ah didn’t even know that was possible. Always figured it was some kinda fantasy-type thing.”

“While I cannot say I have confirmed it visually, I can assure you it is a very distinct possibility,” Rarity grinned. “Almost makes me a little jealous. But I suppose foals are a small price to pay to have found somepony like you.”

Mac blushed. “Well, shucks, Rare. Ah like ya just perfect the way ya are. Ah’ve never really been too interested in that bit anyway.”

Rarity quirked her brow. “My oh my, could it be that our innocent little Mac had always been harboring such erotic desires?”

Mac’s blush deepened. “Maybe just a bit. But Ah never even asked ya how things went with Spike today.”

Rarity giggled maliciously. “Oh, it’s far too late to get out of it now, Mac.”

Mac gulped and braced himself to whatever he had gotten himself into.






All the sex!






Trixie allowed herself a smile as she found her gaze drawn to Twilight as they made their way back to the library. “It’s amazing how different you look with those wings.”

Twilight smiled back, shuffling them slightly. “But I’m still the same pony. No amount of power or responsibility can change who I am.”

“And I am eternally grateful for that,” Trixie assured. “I don’t know what I would have done if you had turned me away.”

“Why would I do that? You’ve shown me you can be a good pony,” Twilight pointed out. “And it really is nice to talk to somepony who understands magic like I do.”

“You get to talk to the princesses,” Trixie reminded.

Twilight nodded. “I know, but it’s not quite the same. No matter how much they tell me that we’re equals now, I just can’t compare myself to them. But you’re just another pony, like me.”

Trixie averted her gaze. “I wouldn’t go that far.”

“To say that you’re a pony?” Twilight chortled.

Trixie couldn’t contain a giggle. “No, that I can be viewed as your equal.”

Twilight rolled her eyes humoredly. “Don’t you dare start with this. You’ve done some things in the past, but it’s the present that should always define you. And even if I was the only pony who could see that, it wouldn’t make it any less true.”

Trixie smiled as Twilight held the door open. “Thanks again for welcoming me into your home.”

“I can never say no to a sleepover,” Twilight laughed.

Suddenly, Pinkie Pie appeared from behind the center table. “Did somepony say sleepover?”

Twilight face-hoofed. “Pinkie, I-“

“Ohhh, is this a private sleepover?” Pinkie interrupted, raising a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. “Well, you two have fun then!”

Before Twilight could dispute Pinkie’s claim, she was gone. Twilight sighed as an air of awkwardness fell over the library.

“Is she always like this?” Trixie asked.

“You’ll get used to it,” Twilight assured. “Whenever I stop to think there might be more than one of her, I just have to remember the mirror pool incident.”

“Mirror pool?” Trixie cocked her head.

Twilight nodded. “Imagine that just now, but multiplied by two hundred.”

Trixie blinked. “It’s a wonder Ponyville’s still standing.”

Twilight laughed. “It’s what keeps life in Ponyville interesting. In bigger towns like Canterlot, there’s already so much going on every day. But here in Ponyville, you’ve gotta have something big to offset the usual peacefulness.”

Trixie smirked. “In that case, you’re welcome.”

Twilight shook her head. “Ponyville wouldn’t be the same without you, Trixie.”

“But there was one thing we never got to discussing about the elements of harmony that I’ve been curious about,” Trixie brought up.

“Ask away,” Twilight offered.

“In the story of the mare in the moon, Princess Celestia alone used the powers of the elements to banish her sister, but as it stands now the elements are one to a pony. Has this diminished their power in any way?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, if anything it’s made them more potent. Because my friends are the true embodiments of each element, the power of each is heightened considerably. That’s how we were able to dispel Nightmare Moon where the princess could only banish her. You see, each kind of pony can hold one element of harmony without strain, or two with a tax. Being that Alicorns are all three types at once, they can have one bound to each for a total of three without burden.”

“So that means that Princess Celestia had to shoulder that for a thousand years?” Trixie marveled.

“It’s one of the reasons I have so much respect for her,” Twilight nodded.

Trixie hummed. “Well then, my second question. You talked about the bonding of elements and the power they can unleash, but you never specified the force behind the activation.”

“That would be love,” Twilight explained. “Be it the platonic love I share with my friends, or the romantic love between Applejack and Rainbow Dash…”

“Or the love of self that Celestia must have in order to activate the elements alone,” Trixie pointed out.

Twilight frowned. “I… never thought about that. And now I wish I’d stop.”

“Sorry,” Trixie apologized. “Now, I assume that the strength of that love influences the power of the surge?”

“Yes, which might explain why Celestia could only banish Luna to the moon,” Twilight exhaled.

“And also perhaps the potency of this latest surge,” Trixie added.

“Also a valid point,” Twilight agreed. “But we’ll just have to wait until tomorrow to do damage control. It’s much too late to start today.”

Trixie turned to glance out the window, where the sun was halfway set. Looking on with an odd sense of calm, she watched it wink out of sight to leave Equestria unlit for a time. Looking to the opposite window expecting to see the moon rise, she instead saw a flash of purple light illuminate the twilight sky, radiating outward in all directions in the pattern of a six-pointed star. Glancing back just in time to see the glow of Twilight’s horn die down, Trixie’s eyes grew wide.

Twilight blushed at Trixie’s attention. “It’s just one of my new daily duties as a princess.”

Over the horizon to the east, the moonrise began unwatched by Trixie. Realizing at last that she was staring, she shook her head and developed a light blush. “You are quite lucky to have such a perfect view of the rising and setting of the moon and sun.”

Twilight smiled. “You mean through my windows? If you’re looking for a good view to wake up to, the balcony is a much better vantage point. And it’s no accident that my house is aligned perfectly. I need to know when twilight comes, right?”

Unable to resist, Trixie giggled. “I would hope you wouldn’t need to double-check.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Yes, I’m sure to mark that off the secret checklist every night.”

Thoroughly beyond help, Trixie collapsed onto the guest bed ride out her wave of mirth.









Touching back down before Vinyl’s shack with a sigh, Rainbow waited for Applejack to dismount before testing the door, which flew open dramatically at her touch. Not needing to see their host red-horned to understand the mischief at work, Rainbow held the door open for her marefriend, just in case.

Vinyl frowned momentarily as her not-so-secret plans were foiled before donning her usual cocky grin. “We were just about ready to start without you guys. You didn’t take a sex break and not invite us again, did you?”

Rainbow scoffed. “You’re just mad ‘cause you never get any.”

“Not so, my rainbow-colored friend,” Vinyl retorted in a poorly-imitated Canterlot accent. “I will have you know that not two hours prior, Miss Octavia and I fornicated in a most auspicious manner.”

Octavia blinked. “Was that supposed to be your father?”

Rainbow chortled in amusement. “Yeah, I’m sure he and Photo Finish have to cancel their tours whenever they get in the mood.”

“You might be surprised,” Octavia ventured. “I happen to recall one such incident that led her parents to the decision to tour separately.”

Vinyl groaned. “Don’t remind me. It was all over the papers.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened. “AJ, remind me to stop clipping the fashion sections out of my newspapers.”

“Ah’m sure they’re filled with tons of sex scandals you’ve been missing out on,” Applejack humored.

“Just wait till the media finds out about Mac and Rarity!” Rainbow snickered. “I’m sure they could have one hell of a field day with that.”

Applejack sighed. “Just so long as they don’t go snoopin’ fer eyewitness reports.”

Rainbow frowned. “You know I’d never do that to you, right?”

Applejack chuckled. “Not what Ah meant, but thanks.”

“Alright, let’s just get this stuff carted over to Tavi’s already,” Vinyl interrupted. “I always feel like this place is listening to everything we say.”

“That’s just the crime shows talking, dear,” Octavia assured with a mirthful smile.

“But how can we ever know for sure?” Vinyl pressed.

Octavia’s smile widened. “By getting you settled into your new home where your Tavi will always be there to protect you.”

Vinyl smiled back. “We’re fillies, Tavi, we don’t need protection.”

“Just each other and that burning desire you have so much of,” Octavia agreed.

“I’ve really got to listen to you more often,” Vinyl giggled.









Wandering the streets of Ponyville aimlessly, Fluttershy found her thoughts no less confused than they had been that morning. And the more she thought about it, the more a feeling of depressed loneliness came over her, to the point where her eyes watched only her hooves as they dragged along the ground.

Raising her head at the sound of familiar voices, Fluttershy spotted Applejack and Rainbow Dash departing Vinyl Scratch’s house with heavy loads on their backs. Despite the strain they must have been under, they were all smiles as they exchanged friendly banter with the less encumbered ponies who accompanied them, Octavia and the aforementioned Vinyl. Seeing them so happy made Fluttershy’s heart ache, but more than for Cheerilee; she dearly missed Rarity.

As wonderful as Cheerilee was, she could not replace the companionship of her best friend. It had only been a few days, but it felt like years since she had been able to share even a simple conversation with the romantically distracted fashionista. And it was times like these that Fluttershy needed her more than ever.

By chance or by fate, Fluttershy’s hooves led her to Ponyville’s premier restaurant, Horté’s Cuisine. There, rather than at her special table, Rarity and Big Macintosh sat gazing up at the stars. Noting Big Mac’s strong hoof draped over Rarity’s shoulder, Fluttershy did not know who she envied more at that moment. Though they were not as well acquainted as she was with Rarity, the big stallion had managed to catch her eye on occasion; particularly whenever he called upon her to care for a sick or injured animal.

More than anypony else of the Apple family, Mac worked with the farm’s animals in his off time. While Applejack handled the more heart wrenching tasks like herding, Big Macintosh did his best to feed them, monitor their health, and harvest whatever they had to offer.

Shaking her head violently as she realized she was now swooning after Rarity’s coltfriend, she proclaimed in the loudest voice she had ever mustered, “I’m so confused!”

Rarity’s ear twitched at the barely noticeable outburst that only somepony intimately familiar with Fluttershy could make out. But this time it was louder than it usually was, and she didn’t see her friend anywhere. Reaching up to kiss Mac on the chin, Rarity freed herself from his grasp. “I’ll be right back, dear.”

Following the sound of Fluttershy’s quiet sobbing, Rarity found her tucked into an alleyway, curled into a ball of misery. “Fluttershy dear, what’s wrong?”

Tears ceasing at the sound of Rarity’s voice, Fluttershy’s head poked up and offered a weak smile. With a sigh, she nuzzled into Rarity’s shoulder, who offered a consoling hug. “I’ve missed you so much, Rarity. There’s so much going on, and I feel lost without you.”

Rarity smiled sadly. “I’ve missed you too, darling. I’ve just been so busy between dress orders and mending my friendship with Spike, all the free time I have is spent with Mac. But I didn’t know you were hurting without me. I promise, Mac will understand if you want to talk.”

Breathing starting to normalize, Fluttershy shook her head. “No, it’s okay. You’re on a date right now, and-”

“Fluttershy, dear, you know you can talk to me about anything. So please, tell me what’s bothering you.”

Fluttershy sighed. “Rarity, I… I think I love you.”

Rarity froze up, at a complete loss as to how to respond to such an advance.

Fluttershy took a deep breath before nodding, fighting with all her might against an intense desire to kiss her friend. Rising to her hooves stoically, Fluttershy started off back home with the calmest stride she could manage.

“Wait, Fluttershy,” Rarity’s voice gave Fluttershy pause.

Fluttershy turned around to fix Rarity with a hopeless gaze.

Rarity sighed. “Do you… really mean that?”

Fluttershy nodded meekly. “I know Cheerilee has her eye on me, but she just doesn’t mean as much to me as you do. I never wanted her to replace you.”

“Wait, Cheerilee?” Rarity pressed. “I had no idea there was anything between the two of you.”

“Well, not until recently,” Fluttershy amended. “She asked me on a date, and I didn’t know what to say. I’ve been trying to figure it out all day, but my thoughts just kept drifting back to you. And then I started thinking about Big Macintosh, and I just feel like such a terrible pony.”

Rarity placed a hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder. “You’re not a terrible pony, Fluttershy. You’re just confused right now. I promise I’ll talk to Mac about it. But for now, you should get some rest. We can talk more tomorrow at the spa.”

Fluttershy nodded before starting off for home again, barely able to maintain her balance amidst her whirling thoughts.

Rarity looked to the stars for guidance, but found no answer forthcoming. This was something she had to figure out on her own.









Rainbow Dash collapsed dramatically at the foot of Octavia’s couch. “What the hell is in these things?” Rolling over to look inside the oversized luggage, Rainbow’s eyes were met with a confusing tangle of wires and strange devices. Question hardly answered, Rainbow asked it again.

“Just some music equipment,” Vinyl answered. “It’s not that heavy, is it?”

Wriggling out from under the sack of wires, Rainbow Dash advanced on Vinyl. “And just what the hell were you carrying?”

Vinyl smirked as she indicated a particularly incriminating bulge in the sack she was levitating.

“Why did I even bother asking?” Rainbow groaned. “Please tell me Tavi at least worked her earth pony magic to get dinner started already.”

Vinyl grinned and leaned in to whisper conspiratorially, “She can’t hear you, she’s in the kitchen.”

Rainbow grinned back. “Silver linings.” Seating herself on the couch, she looked over to where Applejack was dragging the sacks out of the way. “You okay over there, AJ?”

Spitting out the drawstrings victoriously, Applejack walked over to sink onto the plush couch beside Rainbow. “Glad that’s over with. Yer on yer own settin’ that stuff up, though, Vinyl.”

Vinyl waved a hoof dismissively on her way into the kitchen. “You’d probably just break it anyway.”

Giggling as Vinyl sneaked up behind her and gave her a peck on the cheek, Octavia bumped Vinyl aside. “What have I told you about interrupting me while I’m cooking?”

“That sex on a stove is a good way to burn your tail off?” Vinyl guessed.

“I’ll let that one slide,” Octavia chortled.

Vinyl stretched out in an exaggerated fashion as she pulled a chair up with her magic. “Really feels different to think this is gonna be my home now.”

“But it feels exactly the same to have you stare at my flank while I cook,” Octavia returned.

“Hey, I’m not staring! I’m watching you work so I can pick up a few things if you ever force me to cook for myself,” Vinyl defended.

“And what have you learned so far?” Octavia challenged.

Vinyl put a hoof to her chin. “That salt is the same color as semen.”

Octavia chuckled. “Only you, Vinyl.”

In the living room, where Rainbow was starting to doze off, Applejack jolted suddenly, disturbing her partner. “We didn’t ferget the instruments, did we?” Applejack called into the kitchen.

“What do you think was in your sack?” Vinyl called back.

Applejack relaxed, letting Rainbow’s head rest on her shoulder again and stroking her marefriend’s mane idly. “Funny ta think we started livin’ together ‘fore we even hooked up, huh?” Applejack mused, mostly to herself.

Rainbow, having already dozed off, mumbled something or other with apparent sexual implications.

Chuckling, Applejack grabbed Rainbow and lay out on the couch. “Ya make a mighty comfy blanket, Rainbow. Might have ta rethink that little arrangement of ours.”

“Make a good pillow, AJ,” Rainbow returned, nuzzling under Applejack’s chin.

Applejack chuckled. Over the years, Rainbow had gotten craftier in her napping habits, and could now maintain some level of awareness in sleep. This, of course, proved problematic when Applejack could no longer buck her out of any tree on the orchard. But perhaps because of the repeated bumps and bruises she got on the way down, Rainbow’s body had adapted to the abuse. Perhaps Applejack was the cause of her own frustrations.

Thinking a little harder, Applejack considered just how much each of them had adapted to the other over their long friendship. Whether it was smaller things like table manners, or something as big as who they were, they had a lot to thank each other for. Bucking ponies out of trees was certainly a lot more taxing than bucking apples, for instance. However small, Rainbow gave her a workout each time.

Even things she might have taken for granted could be traced back to her flighty friend. She wouldn’t be half as proficient with a rope as she was today if Rainbow hadn’t been prone to fly away at any given moment. She liked to think that evading that rope had given Rainbow a good amount of aerial agility training.

From the day they met, their relationship had been about bettering themselves, be it as ponies, athletes, or friends. And that was not something Applejack could say she shared with any other pony in Equestria, not just her friends. It was a unique feeling of companionship, rivalry and comfort all at once. Perhaps that was what had gotten them this far, or perhaps there was yet more to be unearthed. But if Applejack knew one thing, it was that she-

“Hello? Can you even hear me?” Vinyl’s voice cut through Applejack’s thoughts. “Tavi and I are gonna start dinner, so if you two just wanna lay there cuddling all day…”

Applejack raised her head to smile apologetically at their host. “We’ll be right in.”

Vinyl nodded and ducked back into the kitchen.

The moment lost, all Applejack could do was blush as she considered where her thoughts had been heading. It certainly seemed to be coming up quite a lot in her mind recently, but it felt far too early to consider such a thing a possibility.

Putting it out of her mind for the time being, she placed a kiss on Rainbow’s nose. Rainbow’s face scrunched slightly, but she did not stir. Applejack frowned, as that had been a surefire way to wake her in the last few days. What was more, she hadn’t even perked up at the mention of dinner, and few things could get a rise out of Rainbow better than food.

A smile grew across Rainbow’s lips as she nuzzled into Applejack’s cheek. “You’re the best, AJ.”

Applejack was proud to be one of them. “Guess what yer cowpony’s got fer ya today.”

“Sexy times?” Rainbow mumbled back, somehow able to convey that note of hopefulness through her sleep.

“Better ‘n that, sugarcube,” Applejack chuckled.

Rainbow frowned. “What’s better than sex?”

Applejack maneuvered herself to place her lips right against Rainbow’s ear before she answered, “Food.”

Rainbow shot upright, nearly toppling the whole couch with the strength of her outburst. “Where is it?”

To Rainbow Dash’s bewilderment, Applejack burst out laughing.

“Yeah, haha, very funny. Now where is it?” Rainbow demanded.

“Where’s what, hon?” Applejack teased.

Rainbow frowned. “The food you promised me!”

Applejack donned a look of confusion. “You sure that wasn’t just a dream, Dash?”

Rainbow Dash knew when Applejack was pulling her leg. This was surely one of those times, as Rainbow fixed a hardened stare on her marefriend.

Unable to maintain the act any longer, Applejack’s face broke out into a silly smile. “All ya gotta do is follow me.”

Rainbow followed along obediently to the promise of food. Applejack thought about making a few detours, but decided against teasing her any further as she led her into the kitchen where Octavia had certainly outdone herself in such a small period of time.

Rainbow flew over to her seat to fidget impatiently for Applejack to follow. The instant Applejack’s rump contacted the chair Rainbow began to devour the plate in front of her.

Applejack shook her head in bemusement. While her table manners were getting better, Rainbow still had a long way to go before she could pass at any sort of fancy establishment. Not that Applejack had any desire to put the both of them through that kind of torture.

“Mind slowin’ down a bit there, Rainbow?”

Rainbow paused mid-bite to point an accusing hoof at Applejack. “This is your fault for stealing my lunch!”

Applejack blinked, taking a few moments to recall the event. “Uh, right, sorry,” she answered with a blush.

Vinyl’s brow rose at this latest development. “Sounds like something happened with you two.”

“Ah honestly fergot all about it,” Applejack chuckled. “She does tend ta get a little snappy when she’s hungry.”

“It doesn’t sound like you to steal your friend’s lunch,” Octavia ventured.

Applejack blushed heavier. “It was a heat of the moment thing, and Ah wasn’t really thinking about it…”

Rainbow Dash, having devoured her meal, answered in the reluctant Applejack’s place. “She kissed me when I had an apple in my mouth and stole it from me.”

Vinyl cackled. “Sounds like you got what was coming to you.”

“How was I supposed to know she was gonna pull something like that?” Rainbow shot back, throwing her hooves up in the air.

“I’m sure she at least made it up to you,” Vinyl suggested.

“Big time.” Rainbow grinned. “I’m still feeling it.”

Applejack covered her face with her hat to conceal her burning cheeks.

Vinyl grinned. “Sounds like you two had fun. You should invite us next time.”

Rainbow paused briefly to gauge Octavia’s reaction. “I would, but I owe Applejack another round.”

“Just don’t hurt each other,” Octavia chimed in.

Rainbow shrugged. “It’s not rough if it doesn’t hurt afterwards.”

“Ah think she meant somethin’ more than a little bruisin’,” Applejack murmured.

Rainbow Dash used the momentary distraction to snatch a bite off Applejack’s plate.

“Wh-hey! Ah was eatin’ that!” Applejack protested, forgetting her embarrassment.

“Payback for lunch,” Rainbow grinned. “And it’s not like I took your whole plate.”

“There wasn’t hardly anythin’ left of yer apple when Ah got to it!” Applejack argued. “Besides, there weren’t no table back then.”

“So table manners only apply when there’s actually a table?” Rainbow inferred. “That seems kinda broken.”

“Why else would ya call ‘em table manners if the table was optional?” Applejack demanded.

Rainbow threw her hooves in the air. “I don’t know, a lot of the things with tables don’t make sense. Like tablespoons. They’re nowhere near the size of tables!”

“Ah told ya it’s just a silly name. They don’t have anythin’ ta do with real tables,” Applejack explained. “Like how teaspoons don’t actually taste like tea.”

“That one was even more disappointing,” Rainbow grumbled. “Why would you name something with something else in its name that has nothing to do with the thing? It’s false advertisement!”

“It’s called a teaspoon because it has always been made to be the proper size to stir the contents of an average teacup,” Octavia informed. “And a tablespoon is called such because it is the kind of spoon that is placed on a table for eating.”

“Well, it’s not directly related, then,” Rainbow amended. “But it’s still a stupid name!”

“Is anyone else here able to draw a weird parallel between sex and spoons?” Vinyl asked. “Because I don’t know if you meant to do that, but they’re totally related. They even start with the same letter. Freaky.”

Octavia frowned and put a hoof to Vinyl’s forehead. “Are you feeling alright, dear?”

“What? It never killed anypony to have an active imagination,” Vinyl defended. “Besides, I can’t just sit there and do nothing like you can. I need something to keep me occupied somehow.”

“And food only has so long on this world when it’s set in front of you,” Octavia added.

“It’s not my fault you can’t make enough to satisfy my appetite,” Vinyl shot back.

“If I did that, you’d be too heavy to move from the table,” Octavia reasoned, “and I care about your figure too much to let that happen.”

Vinyl frowned. “So you don’t let me eat all I want because I’m too sexy?”

Octavia chortled. “Something like that.”

Rainbow perked up after seeing that Applejack had cleared her plate. “Oh yeah, you guys would never believe what happened this morning.”

“Is it about sex?” Vinyl guessed.

“No, it’s…” Rainbow paused, thinking. “Actually, it kinda is, in a way.”

Applejack covered her face with a hoof, regretting her choice of words that day.

Vinyl put a hoof to her chin. “Hm… Is it that Rarity is secretly a transgendered stallion and uses a spell to keep her dick invisible so nopony notices?”

Rainbow blinked. “I… that’s… what?”

“That’s awful specific,” Applejack completed.

“Yes, she’s been telling me this for the past couple of days,” Octavia sighed. “I keep telling her it’s absolutely ludicrous, but she remains convinced.”

“Because I saw it!” Vinyl insisted. “Or, well, more like saw nothing.”

Applejack cocked her head. “Come again?”

“Well, she uses that spell, right? So it looks like there’s just nothing there,” Vinyl explained. “And, well, I caught a couple glances under her tail one day, and I noticed something was missing. She’s got a great plot, by the way. Almost as awesome as Tavi’s, but not quite.”

Octavia rolled her eyes. “Can you please just tell her she’s jumping to completely ridiculous conclusions? I’m not a unicorn myself, but if I could do something like that to avoid any perverted glances, I certainly would. Unlike Vinyl, who probably enjoys the looks she gets.”

“Hey, if you’ve got it, why not flaunt it, right?” Vinyl shrugged. “Anyway, it’s like, the only thing that makes sense. Why else would she have something that looks suspiciously like a package when she’s got fabric draped over her?”

“I know for a fact that she owns multiple balls of yarn,” Octavia argued. “It’s entirely possible that you were merely seeing it as you wanted to.”

“Why would I want to see that?” Vinyl shot back. “You know I’d take a good vag over a dick any day.”

Rainbow leaned into Applejack as their argument increased in volume. “So, should we tell them, or…?”

“Well, it sounds like Vinyl already knows,” Applejack supposed. “And Tavi kinda does, too. So Ah guess there wouldn’t be too much harm in settin’ it straight.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Uh, actually, you guys. Would you just quit arguing about this? Vinyl’s got it right. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it’s true. She was born a colt and had some freaky magic done on her to make her look like a filly.”

Octavia frowned. “You aren’t just pulling my leg, are you?”

“We ain’t exactly seen it ourselves, ‘cause that would just be all sorts of awkward, but Ah can vouch as the element of honesty,” Applejack put in. “She’ll always be a mare ta us, but she’s a stallion in the bedroom.”

“See? What did I tell you, Tavi?” Vinyl boasted. “You should really listen to me more often.”

Octavia sighed, but knew when to admit defeat. “Alright, Vinyl, that’s quite enough.”

“But that’s actually not what we were talking about,” Rainbow revealed. “Though it is on that same kind of scale of impossibility.”

“Ain’t impossible, Dash,” Applejack chided. “We all knew it had ta happen eventually. Just maybe not quite so suddenly.”

Vinyl thought for a moment. “Fluttershy lost her virginity?”

Rainbow recoiled. “What? No! She isn’t even sure what to do about Cheerilee yet.”

“Unless there’s somethin’ she ain’t tellin’ us about that one time with Thunderlane, Ah’m pretty sure that ain’t happened yet,” Applejack added.

“Well, you said it had something to do with sex,” Vinyl shrugged.

“Not like that!” Rainbow shook her head furiously. “It’s way more indirect than that.”

“Only ‘cause of somethin’ Ah said,” Applejack confirmed.

Vinyl thought again. “You lost your virginity?”

Rainbow’s brow furrowed. “Scratch, I’ve had sex with AJ like four times. I think my virginity is well out the window by now.”

“Well then I’m out of ideas,” Vinyl huffed.

Applejack sighed. “Ya just had ta get her started on sex. Now she’s probably gonna get some kinda awful ideas.”

Rainbow smirked. “If Vinyl goes anywhere near them, we’ll be there to kick her ass, right?”

“If it really comes to that…” Applejack shook her head sadly.

“Now I’m curious what you two are talking about,” Octavia spoke up. “It’s not something serious, is it?”

“No, it ain’t anythin’ bad,” Applejack assured. “And by now ya got no hope of guessin’ so Ah’m gonna just tell ya. Mah sister and her friends got their cutie marks.”

Octavia froze, slowly turning a fearful eye to Vinyl.

“What? I was just kidding earlier, geez,” Vinyl defended. “I don’t always tell the truth, you know.”

Applejack and Rainbow shared an uneasy glance before shaking it off as nothing.

“Anyway, yeah. Kinda came out of nowhere, but Scoot got herself all worked up over flying and ended up in the hospital,” Rainbow explained. “I guess that was some kind of wake-up call for them, ‘cause after that everything just happened all at once.”

“Definitely the sappiest cutie mark story Ah ever heard,” Applejack chuckled. “But Ah told ‘em not ta do anythin’ sexy ‘till they got their cutie marks. Never woulda thought that’d come so soon.”

“Well, we did say that we would come together to share stories of our past,” Octavia started. “And I feel that’s as good a way to start as any.”

Vinyl frowned as Octavia began to clear the table. “It might cut into the time we have for music lessons, but if you want to, I guess we could do that.”

“We don’t got anywhere we gotta be,” Applejack offered.

Octavia led the group out to the den, where she and Vinyl took up seats on the couch, leaving Applejack and Rainbow Dash to curl up on the plush rug.

“Alright, well, I’ll start then,” Vinyl began. “Way back when we were just fillies, my dad didn’t like the way I behaved around ‘esteemed guests’ and punishing me for it just made me hide behind Mom. She was always more open-minded than my dad. So she came up with the idea for me to meet some friends who acted properly in the hope that it would rub off on me. That’s how I eventually met Tavi, and we were pretty much inseparable since.”

Vinyl frowned. “Well, at least until I met Lyra. We were at a music convention, and Tavi was trying to teach me why classical music was better than electronic music, but nopony was giving me a very compelling argument. Again, until I met Lyra. It was weird, she was loud and disrespectful like me, but she played the lyre. Apparently well enough for ponies to excuse her behavior, too.”

“So, me and her got to talking, and we kinda didn’t stop,” Vinyl turned her gaze to Octavia guiltily. “We just had so much in common, and we were younger and stupider, so before I knew it, I was waking up with her in my bed.”

Vinyl took a moment to breathe, in which Octavia soothed her by stroking her mane lovingly.

“Sorry, anyway, it was really confusing how that ended up happening. I mean, I knew what happened, but it felt like there was something else that happened that night that I couldn’t quite remember,” Vinyl sighed. “But it was hard to deny that I had fun, and I kinda wanted to do it again. So we rode it out, had sex a bunch more times and tried dating. But it was kinda rough in Canterlot, and I couldn’t shake that feeling that something wasn’t right. “

“So after about a month, I broke it off, because I wasn’t even really feeling the sex anymore. I felt really lost and confused, and what was worse is that I hadn’t talked to Tavi in weeks. I hadn’t even really thought about her, like Lyra was somehow starting to take her place. But when I went over to her parents’ house, they told me that Tavi moved away three weeks ago.”

Octavia cooed soothingly as Vinyl turned to bury her face in her lover’s chest. “That was what she had forgotten that day,” Octavia said sadly. “That was to be our last week in Canterlot. Vinyl had gotten me sold on the idea of moving somewhere a bit more rural, away from the pressures of the big city. We were going to buy a house together here in Ponyville, but when Vinyl disappeared…”

Octavia sighed. “Without Vinyl there with me every day, I started to realize just how much I hated the lifestyle I was leading in Canterlot. Her support was a lot of the reason I was able to put up with all the nonsense that came with living there on a daily basis, not just the ponies of the music industry. I hated myself for doing it, but I left without her. I bought this house and tried to assimilate myself into the new life, but it was impossible not to think about who I was leaving behind.”

Vinyl took a shuddering breath. “Once I remembered, I dropped everything and took the next train to Ponyville. I didn’t even care that they charged me extra for a walk-on, or that I was leaving all my stuff behind at my apartment. I just had to see her again. Because on that train ride, I realized what was missing between me and Lyra, and it was something I had always shared with Tavi. I realized for the first time that, well, I loved her.”

Octavia smiled gently and gave Vinyl a kiss on the cheek. “You certainly didn’t give me any time to think.”

Vinyl’s cheeks reddened. “Yeah, when I got off the train and finally found Octavia, I just couldn’t help myself. I hadn’t seen or talked to her in months, and what was the first thing I did? I ran up to her and kissed her.”

“It took me some time to come to terms, but I can say without a doubt that it was the best decision of my life to give her a chance,” Octavia added. “Even when she told me what had kept her occupied those months we were apart, it was impossible for me to resent her for it. She knew she had made a mistake, and she had every intention of setting things right.”

“I wanted her so bad that first day,” Vinyl admitted. “But when it finally did happen, it was well worth the wait.”

“I’d say your experience served us rather well, despite your thoughts otherwise,” Octavia prompted.

Vinyl sighed. “You know how much I beat myself up about that. Looking back on my time with Lyra, I was just so mad at myself. I’d thrown away my virginity to the first mare who asked for it. Tavi told me it wasn’t important, and that it was in the past and all that, but it mattered to me. I couldn’t take back what I’d done with Lyra, and Tavi could never be my first.”

“But you could still be mine,” Octavia soothed. “I couldn’t ask for anything more from you. All I want is for us to be happy together, without all that mess that came before. And if I can’t make you forget, then at least let me make this time we have now more than you’d ever shared with Lyra.”

“I told you before, there’s nothing I didn’t do with Lyra,” Vinyl moped.

“You didn’t have foals,” Octavia was quick to remind. “You didn’t get married, or even fall in love. And I’ll bet you never even let anypony else into your bed.”

Vinyl was shocked out of her state by the last. “Tavi, I don’t-“

“I know you, Vinyl,” Octavia interrupted. “Very well, I might add. And if that’s what I have to do to get you to understand just how much you mean to me, well… I’ll be more than happy to oblige.”

Vinyl’s eyes began to water. “Tavi, I… I love you so much.”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked on in wonderment as the two embraced. This was hardly something either of them was expecting, and for once, neither of them knew what to make of it.

“So, was that an invitation, or…?”

The only immediate response that Rainbow received was a light snore from the two mares tangled upon the couch.

Applejack smiled and nudged Rainbow in the shoulder. “C’mon Rainbow, Ah think it’s about time we headed home.”

“But what about the lessons, AJ?” Rainbow protested. “We can’t just let days just keep passing by like this.”

“It’s just one more day, sugarcube,” Applejack reassured. “Ah promise, we’ll come here early tomorrow and get a good lesson in. Then after the next day, we’ll be comin’ ‘round here every day. Ah just can’t bring mahself to wake ‘em up after somethin’ like that. Besides, Ah’m gettin’ pretty tuckered out after a day like this. There’ll be plenty of time tomorrow ta get everythin’ taken care of. Even that second round ya owe me.”

Rainbow smiled. “Alright, but tomorrow better be a day for the ages.”

“Bet on it, sugarcube,” Applejack smiled back.

Starting off on their way home, Applejack could not keep her head from resting against Rainbow’s shoulder. Rainbow wrapped a wing around Applejack’s shoulder and pulled her closer in response. With everything foreseeable and otherwise out of the way, it was hard to dispel a feeling of accomplishment at the end of such a hectic day.









Apple Bloom yawned as her eyelids started to get heavier. Spending the whole day in a hospital room was more taxing than she had expected. But on this day, there was no way she would leave Scootaloo’s side.

Sweetie Belle tipped over slightly to rest against Apple Bloom’s shoulder, sparking a chain reaction that caused them both to end up sprawled out at the foot of the bed.

“You guys really don’t have to stay. I’ll be fine by myself,” Scootaloo offered.

“Ah ain’t leavin’, no way, no how,” Apple Bloom stood firm.

Sweetie Belle nodded. “We’ll stay with you until you get out of this hospital and we can sleep wherever we want.”

At that moment, the door opened and Scootaloo’s doctor came in. “I see you two are still here,” he said to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave. Hospital regulations cannot allow visitors after-hours.”

“We ain’t budgin’,” Apple Bloom defied.

Scootaloo sighed. “Listen, Doc, I know it’s probably a lot to ask, but could you please let it slide just this once? We’ve all had a bit of a rough day and I can promise you they’re not gonna get in the way.”

The doctor studied them critically for a moment before relenting. “I’ll allow it this once, but please get your rest. You’ll recover faster and have more time for your friends afterwards.”

Scootaloo smiled. “Not just friends, Doc. Fillyfriends.”

The doctor’s gaze softened. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thanks, Doc.”

The door swung closed and they were alone once more.

Apple Bloom smiled. “Feel any better?”

“Knowing that you girls will be here with me?” Scootaloo rose from her bed to give them each a kiss. “Yeah, I think I’ll be okay.”

Sweetie Belle grinned, happily returning Scootaloo’s kiss before curling up with Apple Bloom at the foot of the bed.

“Sorry we can’t cuddle with ya tonight,” Apple Bloom apologized. “Wouldn’t wanna hurt yer wing.”

“It’s alright,” Scootaloo assured. “Just being here is enough for me.”

Apple Bloom smiled, reaching out to give Scootaloo a kiss good night. “We’ll get through this before ya know it. Ah love ya, Scoot.”

“Love you too, AB,” Scootaloo returned with a smile. A quick glance revealed that Sweetie Belle was snoozing peacefully. “Belle, too, even if she falls asleep before I can say it.”

Apple Bloom chuckled. “Ah’m sure she already knows. Even if we ain’t spent any time at her place yet.”

“Only fair if we rotate, right?” Scootaloo supposed. “I’m sure her parents wouldn’t mind too much.”

“Ah sure hope not,” Apple Bloom yawned. “Ah’m getting’ kinda tired, too. How’s about we call it a night?”

“That’s fine with me,” Scootaloo agreed. “Night, Apple Bloom.”

“G’night, Scootaloo.”









Big Macintosh and Rarity arrived back at the farm to the sight of Granny Smith asleep at the kitchen table. Sneaking upstairs without waking her, Rarity sighed as she slumped onto Mac’s bed.

“So, what was that thing ya had ta take care of earlier?” Mac began.

Rarity sighed before sitting up on the bed. “Something I need to talk to you about. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Fluttershy has been approached by Cheerilee about a possible relationship. The whole thing seems to have gotten the poor dear terribly confused about her sexuality and who she really cares for.”

“Since we’ve gotten involved, ourselves, I haven’t had any time to spend with her. It doesn’t seem like much, but this is a big moment in her life.” Rarity paused. “Apart from that little incident with Thunderlane, this is her first taste of romance. And, well, rather than ask me what to do about Cheerilee, Fluttershy… expressed interest in me.”

Big Macintosh blinked. “What did ya tell her?”

Rarity sagged. “I just couldn’t say no. She was so broken up, and I can’t deny that I care about her as well. I told her I would talk to you about maybe coming up with some sort of compromise.”

“Compromise, huh?” Mac rumbled.

“Please, Mac, understand that I love you and would never want to do anything to betray you. Fluttershy is a very dear friend, and our weekly spa day is tomorrow. If she comes on to me then, I don’t know how I could get out of it without seriously damaging our friendship. So please, if you could just consider giving me permission…”

Mac sighed before donning a small smile. “Ah’d be some kinda terrible coltfriend if Ah told ya no, wouldn’t Ah?”

Rarity turned a tearful gaze to Big Macintosh, disbelieving. “Do you mean that…?”

Mac’s smile widened in compassion. “If it really means that much ta both of ya…”

Rarity threw herself at her coltfriend to grab his neck in a strangle hold. “Oh thank you, Mac! I promise this won’t change anything between us.”

“Ah just can’t stand ta see ya sad, Rare,” Mac soothed.

As Rarity came down from her emotional high, something else occurred to her. “Oh, actually, Mac, there was one thing I forgot to mention.”

“If it’s about the possibility of sex, ya have mah permission,” Mac affirmed.

Rarity smiled. “Thank you, but that wasn’t what I was getting at. You see, Fluttershy also expressed a bit of an interest in you.”

Mac blinked. “Really now? Well, if you’d be okay with that…”

“It would only be fair,” Rarity chuckled.

“But where does all this leave Cheerilee? Ah’d hate ta steal Fluttershy away from her.”

Rarity sighed. “That’s the difficult part. I’m not sure if she was just lost in the moment, but she told me that I meant more to her than Cheerilee did. It seemed like she had the idea that Cheerilee was going to replace me in her life.”

“So she does still feel somethin’ fer Cheerilee?” Mac ventured.

Rarity nodded. “Though I think we’ll have to wait until she calms down in the morning to figure that out.” Rarity took a steadying breath. “I can’t thank you enough for this, Mac. I promise, if there’s any way I can pay you back for this…”

Mac chuckled. “Ya ain’t gotta do anythin’ fer me, Rare. Ah’ve already got all Ah’ll ever need.”

Rarity placed a tender kiss on Mac’s lips. “You truly are the most perfect stallion a mare could ask for.”

Mac blushed. “Ah wouldn’t say that.”

“Which is why I have to say it for you,” Rarity giggled. “I love you, Mac.”

Mac kissed Rarity gently on the forehead. “Ah love ya, too, Rare. Now let’s get some sleep.”

Rarity was all too happy to oblige.









Rainbow Dash sighed as they came to rest on the porch. While she definitely preferred flying on most occasions, she’d find it hard to say no to a late night stroll through the orchard again. “Feels like the days just keep getting longer, huh?”

“They’d better, else we might run outta time ‘fore the big show,” Applejack asserted.

“Come on, AJ, we’re awesome. I don’t think we need to worry about that,” Rainbow boasted.

Applejack chuckled, entering the house. “It does feel pretty good ta finally have everythin’ else outta the way, don’t it?”

“I get the feeling there’s still a whole lot going on, but it’s nice to know we won’t be the ones dealing with it anymore,” Rainbow agreed. “I mean, we’re the only ones here working with a deadline! You’d think ponies would respect that, but no.”

“The world don’t just stop ‘cause ya need it to,” Applejack mused. “But that don’t mean we gotta let it get in the way.”

“Except for when we do,” Rainbow said, nudging Applejack’s door open. “Like sleeping.”

“You would be the expert on that, wouldn’t ya?” Applejack laughed.

“Hey, I don’t take naps just ‘cause I want to. It just kinda happens when nothing interesting is going on,” Rainbow defended.

“And Ah’m sure ya only nap in mah trees ‘cause they just happen ta be the closest thing,” Applejack smirked knowingly.

Rainbow shrugged. “Why nap on your trees when I can nap on you now? You’re way more comfortable than a tree. Way sexier, too.”

Applejack chuckled as she hopped into the bed. “Come on, ya silly filly. We got plans tomorrow and we don’t wanna be late, now do we?”

Rainbow joined her under the covers and let her wing drape over Applejack’s side. “Only one way to be sure, right?”

“G’night, Rainbow,” Applejack said with a kiss.

Rainbow smiled and returned the kiss. “Night, AJ.”